Days without Rain Destined for Life
by EnjoyyourJacob
Summary: Seems to be the common Jacob-Bella find a way to each other story, but what if when that's what they want to share has been cursed by a spell thousands of years ago? Starts easy but goes deeper with every new chapter...
1. Prologue

**A/N: I'm going to revise this story. And for a first I gave this story a Prologue. I will also rearrange chapters in their POV, maybe even remove some of them. I am planning on letting this story only be told in Bella's or Jacob's POV and from time to time I will give you an Edward's POV. **

**_Complete Story Summary: _**

**Starts in New Moon at the cliff jump, but Bella didn't jump alone. She got invited by Jacob. From that moment on friendship could turn into more if only Bella wouldn't be holding back. But when she finally opens up and realises she's in love with her best friend, things get complicated. Jacob fails to turn up on a planned trip to Jacksonville with Bella. Victoria gets hold of Charlie and Edward comes back. How will things turn out?**

**A story about Bella to get over with the past and stand up for the one she loves and a story about Jacob to accept who he is and what destiny has planned for him. And the reason behind all of his is a story, they aren't aware of…**

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**A million thanks to Project Team Beta. They are going to help me along to improve this story. The _prologue _has already been beta-ed by Ash and Zombie's Run This Town from PTB which really helped me A LOT. THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! **

**The other chapters still need to go through the beta-process. Please bear with my English until then, since it is not my first language.**

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Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

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**_Prologue_**

**_JPOV_**

I wanted to see Bella laughing.

I so badly wanted her to be happy again.

Since that leech, Edward, broke up with her she was an empty shell, a lovesick wreck and in her very own words 'broken beyond repair'.

It appeared that Cullen had left her alone and unprotected in the woods. How dumb can you be? Didn't he know how many people died each year because they got lost in the forest??? A search party had been started and it was Sam Uley, member of our Quileute tribe, who is treated like some kind of hero by our tribal elders, who finally found Bella in the middle of the night deep down in the forest behind their home and brought her back. Uley had been enraged, my father was upset and the elders were relieved that she was still alive. ALIVE! Nice description for the condition Bella had been in. Anyway, I had been around her from that time on, trying to help her out of the stupor. Charlie was glad that I spent so much time with her so he could focus while at the police station. For her it didn't seem to matter if there was anyone around her. Bella wasn't talking at all. She had been walking around like a zombie. _Ugh!_ Only Charlie's declaration to send her back to her mother three months later pulled her out of her trancelike state.

She had gotten better over the time, but Bella was still trying so hard to hide her pain whenever anything - a word, a song, a picture reminded her of HIM. I saw her suffering and I could only do so much. Being with me seemed to have a soothing effect on her. She came to La Push day for the day, joining my activities, hanging out with my guys, doing things for the appearance of having fun. Over the course of several months, I repaired two decrepit motorcycles she 'saved' from being trashed and had taught her how to ride a bike. I was beginning to catch glimpses of the pre-zombie Bella after that.

Bella and I had been good friends once, inseparable even, when we were toddlers. Then life got in the way. Her parents got divorced and she had to leave Forks with her mom. A terrible car crash took my mom away from us when I was only four. I came around eventually. Bella and I had only seen each other in the summer when she was on vacation visiting her dad. Then those rare visits stopped, too since Charlie decided he was in the need of a little bit of sun from time to time and decided to spend his vacation with Bella in sunny Arizona.

Last year Bella moved back to Forks and I fell in love with her the moment I saw her again. She had grown to a beautiful little lady with long, curly hair and delicate curves. We didn't see each other as much, since she made new friends with the kids from Forks High and then started to hang around with Dr. Cullen's foster kids. At that time I didn't know a thing about the Cullen's, but there had been a strange antipathy, especially when I learned that she started to date Edward _The Geek_ Cullen. One day Bella disappeared with him, leaving a frantic Charlie behind and came back injured. She told an absorbing tale of how she fell down some stairs. I knew she wasn't telling the truth and I kept an eye on Cullen from that point on. Given to the legends of our tribe, the Cullen's were Cold Ones - Vampires. I had laughed at that, thought it was just old scary stories.

I felt vindicated in my concerns when my father even asked me to give Bella a warning against the Cullen's. I watched them closely and there were a lot of things about them that were just odd. They had insanely pale, flawless skin. And their smell was sickening sweet, burning in my still pre-transformation but yet already hypersensitive nose. They moved with the grace of predators and their eyes seemed to change colour almost as fast as some people change their clothes. Even the guys were unearthly beautiful and you could find yourself staring at them, like… _ick!_

Edward had left Bella.

I had been all too willing to be the friend for her that she needed, now that he was out of the way. Just when things seemed to turn out fine for me and she became close friends with me again, I was faced with the trueness of our legends the hard way: I phased for the first time into a huge wolf.

The rest is history.


	2. Airborne

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

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**A million thanks to Project Team Beta that is going to help me along to improve this story. The chapter "Airborne" is beta-ed now as well. Kudos to Kayla Cullen for beating the comma and punctuation rules into me. LOL **

** THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! **

**The other chapters still need to go through the beta-process. Please bear with my English until then, since it is not my first language.**

* * *

**A/N: I'm not exactly following the original timeline. Just so you know.**

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**Chapter 1 - Airborne**

**JPOV**

Two months ago my life had changed completely, and I phased into a wolf for the first time. I was getting used to phasing. It had become as easy as breathing. I could switch from human to wolf in seconds. Even though I was new to phasing, I had better self-control than the rest of the pack.

I had found a way to bend the order Sam had set, and Bella had found out that the history of our ancestors were true. Once she found out, she thought we were killing humans, but I cleared up that huge misunderstanding quickly. After that, she took the news astonishingly well and accepted me turning into a wolf.

When Sam had found out about that Bella knew our secret, he ordered me to patrol more than necessary to limit my time with Bella. I called Bella each day just to hear her voice and because I missed her like heck.

Although we had killed the vagabond dark-skinned leech, Laurent, who had tried to snack on Bella, we now had another vampire roaming around La Push and Forks. No matter how hard we tried, it was as if that female vampire was able to sense danger, and she vanished into thin air whenever we were close enough to finally get her. It made us antsy and pissed, but we didn't give up. Being careful, observant, and as patient as we could be, we were waiting for the right moment. There was no way that we were going to let the redheaded vamp get past the pack.

Bella had told me the female vamps name was Victoria, and that she wanted revenge for her mate's death. James, her mate, had been killed by the Cullens after having tortured and bitten Bella. She told me that only because of Edward Cullen - who had sucked the venom out of her - she was still alive and human. I could hardly breathe and keep my anger at bay when I learned about the whole story, shuddering at the thought of her being so fucking close to becoming a vampire.

The pack had grown in numbers recently. We realized that the constant presence of the redheaded leech lurking in the area around La Push and Forks, activated the wolf gene in the young Quileutes.

The pack consisted of five wolves, including me, until two weeks ago, when my buddy Quil Ateara phased for the first time. Then, one week later, Seth and Leah Clearwater followed. We were eight wolves which made - compared to the olden times - a huge pack. Leah was the first female to become a werewolf. We didn't know how to deal with it, but we managed. The ugly part of it was that Leah and Sam had a thing going once and were supposed to get married, but then Sam had imprinted on Leah's cousin Emily Young last Christmas. Since Leah didn't forgive Sam, she constantly lashed out mentally, bombarding us with memories of their time together.

Harry Clearwater, honoured tribal elder, had died because of a heart attack - coincidentally at the same time when his kids, Seth and Leah Clearwater, went through their transition. When the first shock about his passing had died down, Sam continued training the rookies while we took on extra patrolling. We had to stay alert with the vamp bitch around.

Standing in front of my house, I put my head back and deeply inhaled the fresh, humid spring air. I enjoyed the bright sun shining onto my face. The other day, I had promised Bella to take her cliff diving. Since she had seen the guys jumping weeks ago, she didn't stop talking about how much she wanted to try it. Lately, Bella was up for a lot of recreational stuff, and when I asked her about it, she told me that she wanted to gain experiences. I couldn't explain her sudden change of mind, but I welcomed it. I'd rather do a lot of reckless stuff, instead of seeing her to mope and mourn about the loss of that pathetic leech.

As I impatiently waited for her to show up, I finally heard her ancient truck stop in front of my house. I pulled the driver's door open before she could even kill the motor.

"Hi, Bells!" I grinned, taking her into a big hug. She looked better today. The shadows under her brown eyes faded a bit. Her hair was shining in the sun, and I had to stop myself from touching it.

"Jake." She smiled at me. I grabbed her bag from the trunk and started walking towards the beach.

Being kind of nervous like always when she was around me, I started to tell her about my last night's patrol. Since the red-headed leech had slipped away again a week ago, her scent was fading. Hopefully she had become tired of the game hide and seek and finally backed off.

Bella seemed relieved but was still concerned. She always worried too much about things. She didn't trust us to be strong enough to deal with Victoria. She only saw the human in us, and not the strength we had as wolves. The pack was strong and we fought effectively. It had been easy to kill the dark-skinned vampire, Laurent, and it would be easy to kill Victoria.

"Don't worry, Bells. We're going to take care of her. She won't bother you anymore," I tried to convince her again.

"But, Jake, you shouldn't risk your lives for me. Nobody should die because of me…" She bit her lip and kicked a stone. "You don't know how strong a vampire is. They are _so_ fast. They can outrun you and kill you from behind."

I started laughing. "Bells, you underestimate us! Our strength and instincts are parallel to theirs, Bella. We are designed to fight them."

She frowned angrily, and when I wanted to put my arm around her shoulder in a friendly gesture, she stiffened, shrugging me off. I let her, she would come around soon.

I dropped the bag with her belongings when we reached the beach. Bella would need it when stepping out of the water.

"Are you angry with me?" I asked, since I couldn't stand leaving things unspoken. Bella shook her head in response, but I could tell she was upset.

When we reached the path to the lower outcropping of the cliff, I turned to face her.

"I'm sorry, Bells. I didn't mean to laugh at you." I took her hand to help her over the rocks and roots so she wouldn't trip and fall. "When will you learn to trust us? We killed Laurent. Isn't that proof enough of our competence?"

Bella huffed, but held on tight to my hand. I loved the feeling of her tiny hand in mine, and because of that, I didn't let go of her hand when we reached the top. Bella didn't let go of my hand either, she felt comfortable around me, and I hoped that eventually we could be more than just friends. The wind tousled Bella's hair and she looked beautiful.

My heart skipped a beat when Bella laid her head back, letting the sun shine onto her face. My hands were twitching with the desire to run my fingers through her hair, but I managed to keep them to myself.

She only wanted to be friends. I knew better than to declare my feelings again. She had made it clear not too long ago in the cinema.

"You still want to jump down there?" I asked her.

Looking down into the water, she shuddered, but her eyes were bright and excited. "You bet!"

When Bella stripped off her clothes it had left her in a midnight blue swimsuit that fit her perfectly. "I'm ready," she said, raising her voice. The water underneath us was blue and clear as it seldom was. The expression on her face was that of a warrior. Fierce and concentrated, her body was tense as a bow.

"At three," I said, and started to count. "One…"

"Two!" Bella went on.

"Three!" we cried out together, letting our bodies fall forward. Being airborne, I grabbed Bella's hand and enjoyed the sensation of the free fall. Even having jumped of that cliff so many times, it was still exciting. For Bella it must be overwhelming. She let go of my hand and spread her arms wide, screaming with exhilaration.

The landing was hard. The water was straight as a mirror because of the calm weather. The surface felt as hard as stone, knocking the wind out of me. I trashed my arms and legs to return to the surface, pulling Bella above water in the process. Before she could panic, I wrapped my arms around her body and pulled her up until her head broke through the water.

She turned around and was beaming all over her face. "That was great!" she screamed, and I felt so happy that she had enjoyed herself.

We swam back to the beach and she needed less help than I had expected. She was a good swimmer, and I admired her strong, quick moves. I had the feeling that she felt more comfortable swimming in the water than walking around on her two legs. I grinned when I thought of her clumsiness, of how much she tripped and fell over her own feet. Here in the water she moved as if she belonged there. Her strokes were powerful and confident.

The laughter on her face died away after a while and she started thinking again. By the time my feet hit the ground, she was lost deep in her thoughts and her eyes were glazed over. I could tell that something was really bothering her. After I tried asking her what was wrong and calling her name a few times, she still didn't acknowledge me.

I hated that she started sulking again. She was supposed to spend the day with me for Pete's sake. I didn't want to share her with him. I extended my arm and pushed it over the water, making a fountain of salty ocean water.

"Jake!" she squeaked, spitting and coughing.

I laughed at her, and I hit the surface again, making another wave sputter over her body. She squealed and jumped back. Then, a typical Bella thing happened; she tripped, lost her balance, and fell down on her butt. I walked through the water with a big grin on my face, and I pulled her up.

Her hands clenched into fists as if she wanted to push me away – not that she would have the strength to do so - but something strange happened. It was as if the atmosphere around us changed. We froze, standing skin on skin – her's cool, mine hot. My hands still rested on her upper arms and we stared into each other's eyes. I felt her chest rise and fall with each breath she took. I tried to back away, but I couldn't move or really think. It was all about feeling how close she was to me. One of my hands trailed down her arm and wrapped around the small of her back. I tried to breathe continuously, but failed. My breath only left me shakily.

Her proximity was overwhelming. Her scent was much more alluring, deliciously wet as she was. It awakened some kinky water fantasies. _Oh, get a grip!_

I pulled her closer, making damn sure to use the chance! Bella stared at me in bewildered confusion as her lips slightly parted and her body melted into mine. I sensed her concern, and I knew she was hesitating, but then I could hear her heartbeat spiking. How much more of an invitation would she give to me? I bent my head, longing to kiss her. Cautiously leaning in closer, I moved slowly, giving her the chance to retreat. Then, finally my lips met hers. My heart almost jumped out of my chest.

She didn't move, but when she sighed, her lips softened and she answered the kiss. I moaned quietly when I tasted her lips that were sweet as honey, but salty from the ocean. My hand stroked the small of her back on its own accord. She shivered at my touch, raising on her tiptoes and tilting her head to give me better access.

Bella suddenly broke our kiss and whispered, "Jake, stop."

Who would have thought that she would let me kiss her at all? I pulled back smiling at her, but felt my cheery mood vanish when I saw Bella frowning.

"I don't know if this was right…" she said ashamed, pulling out of my embrace and avoiding eye contact. The haunted look on her face was tormenting me. I hated that she felt she did something wrong.

"Don't blame yourself, Bella," I said. I slowly raised my arm and put it around her shoulders, giving her a chance to pull back if she wanted, but she didn't. "He is gone. He left you alone. You have to move on." I knew that my words would possibly hurt her, but I wasn't willing to let her drown into depression again.

Bella shivered, and I led her out of the water. I pulled her towel out of her bag and put it around her shoulders. She snuggled into it while I rubbed her shoulders. "I'll get you your clothes, Bella," I offered. She needed some time to think. I left quickly and made my way to the cliff, reaching the top in a couple of minutes.

Looking down, I saw her sitting in the sand, arms hugging her own chest as she tried to hold her frame together. I had seen it before. She did it when the memories of Cullen leaving her were too overwhelming and more than she could bear. I hated that she did it now - minutes after I had kissed her. I started trembling, remembering the picture that Sam had shown us when we were in our wolf form: Bella lying in the woods - heartbroken, her mind blank and gone.

How much longer would she still deny her developing feelings for me? The kiss was more than curiosity. There were feelings behind it. Even from her side. Why did she blame herself for allowing me to kiss her and for kissing me back? I wanted to give her the time she needed to heal, but how long would it take? How long would it take her to realize that she was in love with me, and how long could I accept seeing her so heartbroken because of that damn leech? I cared so much for her. She had been my best friend forever, and now I thought of her as my girl - my love. I wanted to heal her broken heart.

"I want to go home now," Bella said when I arrived.

I handed over her clothes and shoes. She looked so sad, and I wanted to hold her in my arms again, to ease her pain and sorrow.

Bella stood up and the towel dropped from her shoulders. Her milky-white skin looked so beautiful. I stupidly stared at her, and I heard her clear her throat. Her voice wavered, a hint of impatience lingering in it.

"Jake, would you mind? I need to change into dry clothes. I'm freezing my ass off here and my body temperature can match with Edwards right now…" As soon as his name escaped her lips, her hand flew to her mouth, and her eyes closed, horror-struck. I saw tears falling from her eyes.

"Bells?" I asked rather helpless, not knowing what would be the right thing to do or say. I stepped forward to comfort her, but she backed away.

"Leave me alone, Jake…" she said sadly.

I turned around and slowly went to my house. I didn't know what to feel or think. The adventure of cliff diving had started out so well, but had ended so lousy. Frustrated, I walked into my garage and slumped on a pile of old tires. A few minutes later I heard her truck roar to life. She drove away without even telling me good-bye.

~*~

The next morning, I came in from my patrol, when the phone rang. After Bella left yesterday I phased into my wolf form, willingly taking over Paul's shift. I just wanted to run and concentrate on my senses, on the job I had to do. I had been confused and excited, but also joyous and hopeful. The running had helped me to relax, and I needed to keep my thoughts to myself since I didn't want to share my first kissing experience with Jared.

The phone rang again. _Who would call this early?_ I picked up the phone. "Black."

Hearing only a frantic breathing first, seconds later Bella's voice – having a searing edge – scared the living daylights out of me,"Come. Jake!"

I slammed the receiver down and sprinted out of the house. While running, I stripped quickly, fastening my shorts to the leather cord around my ankle. Before I even reached the woods, I phased again. I ran through the richly green, damp forest towards Bella's home. The urgency and despair in her voice pushed me to the limits of my speed. _Had Victoria been around the house?_ When I finally reached the edge of the woods behind her house, I phased back and pulled my pants up.

Moving closer to the house, I heard her crying. I let myself in. "What's up, Bells?"

Bella was crouched in the kitchen and sobbing loudly, her head buried between her knees. She didn't even look up at me. I picked her up and quickly ran up the stairs into her room. Bella reacted automatically to the change of position and clung to my chest. I placed myself on her bed and held her in my arms. For a moment, I wondered if our kiss was the reason for she was crying.

_Would she call me and ask me to come over if that was the case?_ I doubted it.

She was so tiny and frail as she slumped in my lap. I drew in a surprised gasp when she cuddled even closer into my chest. I tried to ignore her firm butt moving in my lap, but a certain part of my anatomy awakened.

"Bella, what happened to you?" I tried to get her attention, but she didn't answer my question. I couldn't think straight. Her movements made me feel uncomfortable in a very special kind of way. I had to force my attention to the more important things. When I arrived, there was no trace of a stinking leech's scent. Also, inside the house, everything was clean apart from the marginal rest of her abandoning boyfriends scent. I wrinkled my nose disgustedly. My eyes moved quickly through her room, nothing unusual to see at all.

"Come on, Bells. I'm gonna go crazy if you don't tell me what's going on." I decided to push her into a reaction and tease her. "You're whining like a baby."

"I am not whining, Jake." She revolted and wiped the tears from her cheeks, but they kept on flowing constantly.

"So, what do you think you are doing instead?" I asked her furthermore. She lifted her head and finally looked at me. Her breathing steadied slowly. "Look at you, Bells. You're a mess." I was shocked at the lost expression on her face, but I covered my anxiety. I reached over and pulled out a Kleenex from the small tissue box beside her pillows. Bella grabbed it thankfully and cleaned her face.

"I'm sorry, Jake. I don't know what came over me," she apologized. I raised my eyebrows with disbelief.

_Did she just apologize for her breakdown? That was so Bella._

"Why did you call me?" I asked.

"I didn't want to be alone." She hopped from my lap and went to the window. I leaned back and stretched my muscles; her bed was far too small for me. I made a little show out of my stretching, knowing that she was watching me out of the corner of her eye. Lately, she had been ogling me more often. Being a wolf definitely had its advantages. I had quickly gotten a structured, muscular body without having to do any work for it.

Bella watching me caused her breathing to accelerate. She was stubborn and denied to be attracted to me. I would play my ace and show her what a real man looked like. No ice cold and very dead leech could ever compete with a breathing, warm werewolf.

_Jacob, you're an absolute moron,_ I thought to myself. I had my fun when Bella's cheeks turned beet-red, and she grabbed her windowsill so she wouldn't lose her balance.

_Yupp, I could do that to her._

"I know you have the hot's for me," I said, teasing her again.

Bella sucked in a rough breath and shook her head. "You're dellusional, Jacob. You're just my best friend."

I stood up and walked over to her. I put my finger under her chin and lifted her head, forcing her to look at me. "I'm attractive to you. Don't deceive yourself."

Bella stepped back, avoiding looking at me any longer. "I don't know, Jake… I don't know if I'm ready to fall in love again."


	3. Nightmare

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

* * *

**A million thanks to Project Team Beta that is going to help me along to improve this story. The chapter "Nightmare" is beta-ed now as well. Kudos to Jules and to Kayla Cullen for AGAIN beating the comma and punctuation rules into me. I hope my brain will remember it next time. LOL **

** THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU! **

**The other chapters still need to go through the beta-process. Please bear with my English until then, since it is not my first language.**

* * *

**A/N: I'm not exactly following the original timeline. Just so you know.**

* * *

**Chapter 2 - Nightmare **

**_BPOV_**

It was five months, two weeks, and four days since Edward had left me.

Only five months, two weeks, and four days later I thought of Jake and the kiss we had shared.

I was supposed to wait longer than that for Edward to come back. What would half a year mean to a vampire who had all of eternity? Surely, Edward would soon realize how much he actually loved me and return to me. Would he? I snorted with irritation. Why would Edward want to come back? What was I thinking? He broke up with me because I wasn't good for him.

I had heard Edward's voice again today. Surprisingly it was during the kiss I shared with Jacob, rather than the cliff dive. Usually I only heard Edward's voice when having an adrenaline rush. Maybe sharing a first kiss with your best friend was an adrenaline rush?

Our kiss had been special, and I had not expected to react to Jake so powerfully. Nevertheless, I felt bad. I felt bad and guilty that it had lasted only a brief span to be disloyal to Edward, the love of my life.

I was confused; I felt all the more angry at myself. Why did I let Jake kiss me? I should have stopped it because you just don't kiss your best friend. It wasn't right. He has been my best friend for as long as I can remember. He was always a warm-hearted kid who made me laugh constantly. Now he was grown into a young man with a smile that that warmed me from the inside out and with a body to die for.

How could he fall in love with me anyway? During the last few months he had seen me at my worst. He had tried to put me back together and to bring me out of my depression. He could only do so much, as soon as we separated; I was in the same horrible condition as before.

No. He deserved better than that. I was only using him in some sick twisted way to get over my issues. I was such a bad person. I would risk our friendship if I gave in to this and it ended badly – and it would end badly - because I wasn't the same girl I was before Edward. I was a shell of my former self. Worse – I was a psycho who heard voices in her head. Jake should find himself a girl who was able to love him with all of her heart and soul since I would probably never be able to give him that. He deserved better than me.

I felt a sharp pang in my heart at the thought, and all my insecurities and self-doubts crashed down on me. No, I definitely didn't deserve to be happy with Jake.

I sobbed silently into my pillow. It was damp from tears already, and somehow I wasn't sure what actually made me cry. Was I crying out of old habit, or because I still missed Edward so much, or because of the thought of Jake with another girl? I couldn't tell.

Eventually I fell asleep completely exhausted and started dreaming almost immediately.

_I held hands with Jake and he smiled happily at me. At our feet a little boy played with some wooden toys, and when the baby boy looked up at us, I looked into a younger version of Jake. In an instant I was sure that it was our child. _

The moment was so peaceful that I wanted it to last forever, even though it was just a dream.

_Jake bent down to kiss me, and I wrapped my arms around him, kissing him back. Then, someone walked out of the shadows of the nearby forest. It was Edward with hungry looking, blazing black eyes, and he came stalking towards us. _

_"I'm here to take back what belongs to me," Edward said, his eyes boring into mine. The strange thing was, I was ready to follow Edward – even though I should just have kicked him in the guts for leaving me alone for all those years, never contacting me once. _

_Jacob, not willing to let me go, stepped in front of me, trying to shield me from Edward. _

_"She is MY wife," Jake answered in his strong, deep voice, and he picked our child up, holding him close to his chest. "She chose me. Go away and never come back."_

_Somehow, Edward managed to get around Jake, practically snatching me out of his arms. I didn't fight. I didn't protest. Within the blink of en eye, I found myself deep in a forest. I was hidden in some cave, Edward kneeling at my side. _

_"I have missed you so much, my love," he said into my ear, and his velvety voice soothed me so perfectly. Willingly, I let Edward embrace and kiss me, which led into more. I was pinned under Edward and he moved over me in - what I realized - a sexual way, only I felt nothing. In no way did I feel anything close to what I felt for Jake. I had to fight Edward off, tell him to bring me back. But I literally couldn't. I couldn't talk, I couldn't move._

_I knew Jacob would be here in no time. I knew he would come and get me back. My expectations were answered when he suddenly hovered over us, forcefully yanking Edward away from me. Jake had a knife in his hand, and with one powerful motion, he pushed the knife up to the hilt into Edward's chest. _

_I heard myself cry out, "NO! Jake, don't." But it was too late, Edward was dead – I thought vampires couldn't die like this?_

_"Oh, Jacob, what have you done?" I groaned, feeling despair and fear crashing down on me. Jake's beautiful face contorted in pain as he excruciatingly slowly morphed into a huge black wolf right before my eyes. The transformation was ten times worse than anything I had ever seen in horror movies. _

That was the moment when I started my hysterical screams, and I finally woke up. What had me crying? Was it the thought of Edward being killed or that Jake had been in pain when he phased? Or did I scream over my own insanity and weakness? Because – no doubt – it had happened as I refused to take up a position for neither of them.

Even in my dream I had felt the hole in my chest rip open. Pain coursed through me as I felt torn between the two of them. Though I had been sleeping, I knew whatever choice I made – one of them would be hurting, and I was disgusted with myself. How could I cheat on Jake like that?

As I sat in my bed, panting and sweating, the door opened and Charlie slipped into my room, pulling me out of my reverie. "Bella? You okay?" He looked so terribly tired. Again, I had disturbed his sleep with my nightmares. Seeing him like that didn't make me feel any better either.

"I'm so sorry, Dad. I didn't want to wake you up," I said groggily, trying to decipher the dream.

"Don't worry about _ME_, Bells." Charlie sat down on my bed, and in a sudden sign of affection, he ruffled my hair. "When will your nightmares finally stop?" he asked. With a sad expression on his face he suggested, "Maybe you would feel better if you talked to a professional?"

I startled. "No way, Dad."

"Well, I'm not saying you're crazy or anything," Charlie said, trying to soothe me. "I'm only trying to help you, Bells." He rubbed tiredly over his eyes. "Each night I wake up from your yelling, and I don't think it is normal to have such frightening dreams over months."

I ran my hands through my hair. "I definitely won't talk to a professional, Dad. I don't want to talk to anybody," I said exasperatedly.

"Bells, it's been months since _he_ left you. Eventually you should get better," Charlie insisted. "It's not normal behaving like that."

I gritted my teeth. It wasn't fun hearing your parent talk to you as if you were crazy in the head. I wanted to convince him of my sanity. "This dream was different. I dreamt of Jake." I wished he would leave me alone again.

"Jake? Why would you be screaming then? Have you been fighting?" Charlie sounded so concerned. I sighed in silent frustration.

"No. Well, not exactly," I groaned. I wanted this conversation to end.

"Okay, Bells, if you need someone to talk to you know where to find me." Charlie patted my head which he didn't do very often. He wasn't the affectionate kind of father and showing me his affection twice in the course of a few minutes, made the gesture even more touching.

I mumbled, "Sure…"

Charlie left my room, and I could finally think alone. Dawn was breaking, so he was now getting ready for a new day at work after having another disturbed sleep. I knew he was worried sick over my mental condition. My strange behaviour clearly had to end before he would drag me to a psychiatrist. I had to try harder; I had to be more convincing that I was okay.

I was dead tired. I pulled the comforter over my head and tried to sleep for another hour or two. But the memories of my dream echoed in my head and didn't let me rest. The one thing that had been so unbearable was seeing Jacob in pain. Why had it been agonizing for Jake when phasing actually didn't cause any pain? The other thing I couldn't explain; why would Jake phase into a black wolf and not into his russet coloured form?

Remembering the dream was almost as horrifying as if dreaming it. Once again I dreamt the strangest dream involving Edward. Pondering over the dream only led to the already familiar questions; why had he left? Why didn't he love me anymore? Why was I still hurting? It really nagged my confidence when he told me I wasn't good for him.

The pillow muffled my sobs so Charlie wouldn't hear me crying. I cried until I was so exhausted that I had no more tears to shed. My eyes were sore and the tender skin underneath hurt. I stayed in bed, staring up at the ceiling. An hour later I heard Charlie leaving the house. I got up, took a shower, and went into the kitchen. I tried to eat some cereal, but my stomach churned and twisted. There was a rollercoaster of emotions spiralling through my head. Was it wrong to move on? Did I want to be more than friends with Jacob already?

My thoughts were coming full circle, and I was no wiser than before. How could I be Jake's girlfriend when I still stuck to my lost love? Was it even appropriate to think about being more than best friends with Jake? He deserved better then to function as a replacement. That's what I saw in him wasn't it? Or had I fallen in love with Jacob?

It was easy to be fond of him. His warm and easy-going nature made me feel better constantly. He was my light. He was my sun. But was this love? I loved Jacob as best friend - about that I was absolutely sure - and I had enjoyed his kiss yesterday, very much indeed.

Did it make sense to wait, and wait, and wait for Edward to come back to me? Let's say - just hypothetically speaking - that Edward had lied the day he left and that he actually still loved me, wouldn't he have called or come back a long time ago? But he didn't come back, which meant he didn't love me. What was I waiting for?

Edward's friggin' "you are my life now" thing hadn't been true at all. Or maybe my human frailty had annoyed him in the end and he had just lost interest in me. What did I know? Edward had told me himself: vampires got easily distracted and would lose interest again sooner or later. What did time mean for a vampire after all?

Suddenly I was gasping for air as my chest constricted and my stomach heaved. I made it to the sink, disgorging the little I had in my stomach. My head was swirling, my heart pumping furiously. With shaking hands I cleaned the sink, and after having rinsed my mouth I sank down to the floor.

It was as if all the thoughts about Edward opened the gate to thoroughly hidden memories. I started hyperventilating when all the memories crashed down on me. I was anxious, panicky even. I was breaking down and nobody would be here.

I grabbed the phone and dialled Jacob. When he answered, I franticly stammered just two words: "Come. Jake!"

~*~

I regained consciousness when I was lifted by two strong and overly warm arms. I wrapped my arms around Jake's neck feeling safe and grounded again. Still, I didn't stop crying for a long time. Eventually he coaxed me out of my depression, handing me a tissue from my night stand.

"I'm sorry, Jake. I don't know what came over me," I apologized, still sobbing. I felt bad because I was using him again.

"Why did you call me?" Jake wanted to know, looking at me very concerned.

I answered honestly, "I didn't want to be alone." I was suddenly all too aware of his presence and it confused me. I hopped up from his lap and went to my window, staring out into the garden. From the corner of my eye I watched Jacob stretch his huge body. I saw the muscles move under his smooth russet skin. I groaned inside. How could a girl stay calm when she was close to such eye-candy?

I was embarrassed, mostly because of my break-down, and that I didn't know better than to call Jacob. But it proved once more how much I needed him and how important he was to me. He had given me comfort and solace in his own way. I felt better as soon as he came and took me in his arms.

"I know you have the hots for me," Jacob said suddenly with a huge grin on his face. He had caught me staring at him, and I was annoyed with myself.

I sucked in a deep breath and shook my head.

"You're delusional, Jacob. You're just my best friend," I tried to clarify, but even in my ears it sounded lame. Jake stood up and walked over to me. Putting a finger under my chin, he lifted my head so we could look into each others eyes.

"I'm attractive to you. Don't deceive yourself." He was so sure about himself, so confident.

I wished I could have such confidence. I stepped back, avoiding looking at him any longer.

"I don't know… Jake, I don't know if I am ready to fall in love again."

Jake trapped my face between his hands. I had no chance to back away. "I can wait," he answered serenely.

"You don't understand, Jake…" I snapped angrily. _Why would he act so cocky?_

Jacob raised an eyebrow in response to my harsh words. "Enlighten me. I want to understand."

I bit my lip, expecting him to become upset or to step back and let me go, but he didn't. He stayed calm and serene, his overly warm and large hands framing my face, his thumbs stroking my cheekbones.

"I can't imagine loving you as much as I love Edward," I pressed through my gritted teeth. There, I had said it out loud. _What would he do? What could he possibly say to that?_ I bit on my lip pretty hard.

Jacob moved one of his hands lower, cupping my chin. With his thumb, he tapped the lip I was biting, and I let it go.

"See, Bells," he said in his warm and husky voice. "I'm here. He is not. I can fight for you. He can't. I've got a pretty good chance to convince you that I'm just the one for you. Don't you see?" He smirked at me and stepped back dropping his hands to his side.

"Ah, Jacob…" I sighed.

Jake sat down on my bed again and opened his arms in an inviting gesture. "Just love me as much as you can. I know you love me. You love me a lot more than you admit to yourself. I am sure that's a good base to start at."

_Where did he get hat damned confidence from? _

"Jake¾" A big lump formed in my throat. Could I tell him? Should I tell him everything that was going on inside me?

"Well, maybe I'm a little attracted to you. Maybe I'm even in love with you," I confessed honestly. I was surprised at my courage, but as soon as the words escaped my lips I regretted them. They would only feed his hope and needlessly complicate the matter. I quickly added, "But I don't know for sure…"

A huge grin spread over his face. "I told you so!"

"No, Jake, wait." I crossed my room and closed the little distance between us. I stared in his eyes and he looked back in anticipation. If he saw in which condition I really was, he would leave it at that and understand that I wasn't the right kind of girlfriend for him.

"I'm pretty messed up, Jake. I cling to Edward like an addict. I'm afraid that I will never get over him," I admitted quietly. "I'm afraid that I would drop you right in the very minute Edward comes back." I was so embarrassed I couldn't even look into Jacob's eyes - but he would finally understand and hopefully keep his hands off me.

But Jake surprised me again, saying, "I wouldn't let you go, Bells. I would fight for you!"

I felt the blood drain from my face. Fight? That's just what he did in my dream and I couldn't have anything like that to happen for real. I was frustrated, and I clenched my teeth. He was so in love with me, but what could I give him back? He deserved better than being second best.

"Bells, just give us a chance. I won't push you into anything you don't want to do. I promise," Jacob said. He caressed my wrists with his fingers, causing me to shudder.

I pulled my hands back. "I have to think about it, Jacob."

"I'll be right here waiting for you," he said, smiling at me.

We still stood in a very close proximity, and it seemed as if neither of us wanted to be the first to step away. Finally Jacob shrugged his shoulders, asking, "So, what's on the agenda for today? Cliff diving? Motorcycling? Whatever floats your boat, Bells, count me in."


	4. One step forward, two steps back

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

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**A/N: The original chapter contained an Alice POV and an Edward POV. You will find these in the Outtakes section. Outtakes are not revised yet and probably won't get beta-ed. ****This chapter went through the beta-process. Thanks to Project Team Beta for doing an awesome job! If you're looking for a beta, fill in your _story application _and hit 'send' --- www(dot)projectteambeta(dot)com_  
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**_Chapter 4 - One step forward, two steps back_**

**~Jacob~**

Several weeks ago, Bella and I shared our first kiss, talked some things out, and I had promised her I would wait and be there as her friend until she was ready to take the next step.

Today, Bella and I went to First Beach, enjoying another one of those awesome sunny days. I had successfully convinced her into doing her homework outside since she really needed some fresh air, and the warm sun couldn't hurt. She always looked so tired, and I knew she still didn't sleep enough because of her haunting nightmares. I wished she would talk to me about them.

We had a fine spring, and an early summer this year. Two or three days a week the sun would be shining constantly, which was unusual for the Pacific Northwest. I could really get used to the weather if I wasn't forced into the damn school. Bella was studying for her finals and insisted on me doing my homework as well.

I tried to find a way out of it, but Bella didn't give into me in the slightest. My complaints left her totally unimpressed. Usually she shrugged me off with this tiny special smirk, saying, 'either, we're doing our homework or I just stay in Forks. Your choice.' And I was wrapped around her finger.

I knew she was right in some way, but I really hated school and I saw no point in it anyway. With being a werewolf and the responsibilities that came with it, I knew where my place was and what I wanted from life – which definitely wasn't hanging around in school all day long.

Actually, I profited from the constant learning. I was getting better grades, and my teachers were telling me that I was on a 'good path'.

Other than that, Quil and Embry started nagging me about being pussy-whipped, and that I should finally do it with Bella or give her up. I lashed out at them heftily, and they never mentioned the matter again, but I was still royally pissed at them and at the situation.

There were days when I was frustrated, even irritated. Trapped between my promise to give her the time she needed and my desire to finally have Bella as my girl-friend, I have never felt more insecure and unstable before in my life. I had promised to be patient and not to push her. Bella didn't mention our kiss ever again and never gave me a signal that she wanted to try for a second time. In fact, she didn't loosen up. She was cautious around me, trying to not feed me hope – rather backtracking than taking one step forward. It was wearing me out.

Still, being around Bella made me weak in the knees, and I felt like flying over the clouds all the time, butterflies in my stomach included. I just couldn't let her go. Deep within me I knew - even though we were both still so young – that Bella was the one I wanted to spend the rest of my life with.

I stared into the sky while Bella had her nose stuck in her calculus textbook. Really, I would do anything only to be with her, but I was becoming fidgety while lying here and having my homework to do. I desperately wanted to move and work out. I watched Quil, Seth, and Embry fooling around in the water. _Why not just join them? It would be so much more fun._ I sighed.

"Aren't you hot, Bells?" I tugged at Bella's jacket, not understanding why she covered herself with layers of clothing on a warm, sunny day like this.

"It's not that warm," Bella said, shuddering. "Apart from that, I get sunburned in a split of a second." She was chewing absent-mindedly on her pencil and didn't even look up at me.

I snorted, thinking how perfectly I could shield her from the sun _and_ keep her warm. Was there really no way to distract her? Maybe I could convince her to talk? Kinda like, _Hey, Bells. I'm all head over heels. What about you? Will you come around finally and give me a chance? _

No, I definitely wouldn't ask her that. It would only scare her away even more. I sighed again in the hope she would look at me. But I was wrong. Bella stayed attached to her books.

"Argh, Bella, don't be a grinch. It's so damn boring," I complained loudly and shoved my books aside. She only shifted her position, grabbed another book and flipped it open.

The sun was burning down on us, and I was bored out of my mind. I had to do something or I would fall asleep right there, right then, but I couldn't come up with any reasonable idea of how to lure her away from her homework.

Eventually I gave in to my sleepiness, mentally repeating some lines of a song that I had heard this morning.

_I'll be your dream, I'll be your wish, I'll be your fantasy. _

_I'll be your hope, I'll be your love, be everything that you need. I love you more with every breath - Truly madly deeply do. I will be strong, I will be faithful, 'cos I'm counting on a new beginning, a reason for living, a deeper meaning-- _

"What's that song?" Bella's voice pulled me out of my daydreams.

_WHAT? Did I absentmindedly sing out loud?_ Embarrassed, I shook my head and brushed her off, saying gruffly, "Savage Garden. Truly, Madly, Deeply."

"Nice," Bella mumbled, and when I opened an eye to look at her, her features were clouded. I wondered what I could have done to upset her, but her scent wafted over me. She smelled so delicious—like vanilla, cream, and wild strawberries, and I was lost.

_When I was a kid, I liked to savor my treats. Candy was too precious to be eaten all at once. You're like that candy, Bells, and when it means that I will have to wait for you still longer, I will gladly wait, because devouring you will only be sweeter then… _

Definitely, my brain _must_ be fried by now. I grinned lazily, sleepy. Oh, the things I wanted to do to her…

"Jake, you look weird." Bella poked me in the ribs, and I again opened one eye to find her face close to mine.

"I'm bored to the bones," I said. "You know, you wouldn't need a high school diploma or a college degree if you were with me, Bells."

Her mouth dropped open. "What?"

"Well, marry me. I'm going to care for you and our kids. You wouldn't need to bother with school and stuff." I half-smirked at her, half-damned my big mouth.

Bella closed her mouth with an audible 'clack' and pressed her lips to a hard line, frowning. "Who said that I was going to marry anyone, let alone you?" She couldn't hide the bitterness in her voice, not before me, I would always be able to read her like an open book. I almost regretted what I had said. However, I did say it, and now the wolf was out of the sack, so to speak.

I narrowed my eyes, waiting to see if she would state anything more, declaring what she actually wanted to say – and she did, her voice softening.

"Um, sorry Jake, but actually I really don't want to get married. Not after what I went through when my parents got divorced, you know?" She sounded so sad, I wanted to comfort her and take the sadness away.

"Not all marriages end badly, Bella," I objected, facing her. "But we wouldn't need to marry. It's old-fashioned anyway…" I waved my hand dismissively and a huge grin spread out all over my face. "Let's live in sin then." The idea was very appealing.

"Right." She glared at me. "How would you take care of me, Jacob Black? You're not even close to graduating and getting a job. How would you do that, huh?"

I raised my hands into the air and squinted at them against the bright sun. "I've got two strong, skilled hands. Look at them. That's how I'm going to take care of you." I rolled over onto my stomach. "I mean it, Bells. I'm serious."

Bella stared at me thoughtfully, as if she really was considering the option.

"I'll work my ass off for you, Bells. I'll find a job, save big bucks, and then I'm going to open my own car shop." I tried to play it cool, tried to sound nonchalant, but honestly my heart was pounding in my chest like crazy. Here I was, laying down the plans for our future in front of her. _What would she say? What would she think?_

Bella narrowed her eyes. "Do you seriously think that girls don't need to study?"

_WHAT? What was she thinking?_

"Hell, no!" I defended myself. "You got me wrong. You can study as long as you want. I would never hold you back. I just wanted to let you know that you have options."

Bella cocked her head and raised her chin. "And what if I decided to go in for a career?"

I propped up on my arms. Whatever she wanted, I would give it to her – gladly. "I wouldn't mind, Bells. I'll support you as much as I possibly can. I already spend most of my spare time helping you with your stuff, so--"

I smirked, imagining Bella in a sexy office dress, and added, "when you're a rich girl, then you can pay me off."

I really couldn't help it. With this sexy image in my head, I suggestively cocked an eyebrow, and when she blushed, I guffawed.

Bella smacked me across the head and shrieked, "Sometimes you're such an arrogant bastard."

"That's just how I am." I laughed at her and then snatched the pen she held in her hand. Finally having an idea of how to distract her from her studies, I jumped to my feet. "If you want it back then come and get it!"

I started to run, and when I looked over my shoulder, Bella was getting on her feet and following me. _Cool! That would be fun._

"Jake, stop it!" Bella called after me and started running. "Now."

I slowed down, giving her a chance to catch up, but whenever she was within arm's length I picked up speed again. Replaying this for a couple of times, I let her chase me across the beach. Eventually, I pretended to give in.

"Give it back," she panted, closing the distance and convulsing with laughter.

I lifted my hand high up in the air, grinning broadly. "No."

She circled me, chancing her luck when she reached out for the pen. I jumped back, lifting my arm even higher. Laughing at her, I realized that I wanted to drag out this little game I had started. "This is mine." For whatever reasons, I longed to chase after her. A tiny little bit. Only for a little while.

"Run, Bells." My voice dropped, and I slowly and menacingly took one small step toward her.

Bella froze, trying to decipher what was going on. I smiled and cocked an eyebrow. "Run!"

She turned around and ran.

I jerked forward, itching to move, but I waited, giving her a head start. Then I followed her, allowing her to move fast but at her own speed, only never closing the distance fully.

My senses heightened. I heard her heart jack-hammering in her chest, and I could smell her clearer than ever. Her scent became even more appealing the more she exerted herself to get away from me. Never did I know that playing tag could be so… sensual. I was aware that I chased Bella away from the beach and closer to the cliff. When she turned around she was laughing and stuck her tongue out at me. _Dammit__. Little v__ixen!_ This little game aroused me but also triggered the wolf in me. I ignored that I was heating up and that my muscles were twitching as I ran after her, her scent flooding my senses.

At one point I had the feeling that I should stop, but I didn't,… Then it happened.

Bella tripped, and she fell. Cracking up with laughter and amused over her own clumsiness, she scrambled away.

Something in my head just snapped. The impulse to phase was too strong, like a flash of lightning in my brain. I doubted that I could stop it anymore. Before I knew it, I jumped forward while I already felt the fire running up my spine, the strong spasms in my muscles, and the cracking in the bones as they wanted to shift into their animal form.

_Oh, God, this is not happening!_ I couldn't allow the phasing. I would hurt Bella if I let my control slip.

"Out of my way," I shouted, my voice failing with horror. What came out of my mouth was more of a roar then a human cry.

Bella closed her eyes, horror-struck. She rolled away from the spot she had fallen, and I landed next to her, my fingers clawing the sand.

_Fingers. I still had fingers?_

I kept my eyes closed, relieved that I was still in my human form. Still, I was afraid that the slightest trigger would make me phase nevertheless. Digging my hands into the sand, I searched for purchase, anything that would keep me from phasing into a wolf.

The grains of sand bit under my nails, and what sand I had between my hands was pulverized in split seconds. _Don't you phase, Jacob Black,_ I repeated over and over in my head. I listened to Bella's erratic breathing and her rapid heartbeat, and concentrating on her breathing sort of calmed me down. In this moment she was my anchor to the sane world.

At some point I felt her tiny hand on my shoulder. She was trembling, and as I had pressed my face into the cool, wet sand, I became aware that she must be lying in the water and would be freezing. In automatic response I wrapped my arm around her and pulled her close to me.

Bella gasped, but she didn't pull away. "Hey," she whispered instead, her voice sounding frightened.

I just lay still and held her tight. Ashamed, I eventually looked up. The blood had drained out of her face. She was ghostly white; her dark eyes were huge and worried in her pale face. "Bells," I croaked, "I'm so sorry…"

Carefully and slowly, as if I was a shy animal, she began to wipe away the sand from my arm and my face. I almost laughed out at the absurdity of it, but then I found that I was just happy that she didn't turn away from me. She could pet me anytime, if she only stayed with me.

"Did I scare you?" I finally wanted to know. I was calming down now that I felt I was under control again and nothing had happened.

"Yes," she confessed and absentmindedly brushed the sand out of my hair. "What happened?" she asked, and the worry was creased into her face.

I turned beet-red from head to toe as I tried to process what had actually happened. When I finally came up with a solution, I could only whisper, "I guess my wolfish instincts got the better of me when I chased you… When you fell down I nearly lost it."

Her face was like an open book and I could easily read that she was surprised, shocked even.

"Oh my gosh, Jake!" she cried out. "You thought I was your…" The last word was a shriek only. "…prey?"

"Sort of…" I admitted, ashamed, but at the same time I noticed that I could smile again.

"Ewww." She smacked my arm and squeaked, "What the hell? I am no … FOOD!"

I snorted, her words conjuring up images of candy and strawberries and cream and her beautiful body in between. The fire that ran along my spine before nestled in my groins, and then I did what I did. I pushed my body up and moved over her. "I think you're very … yummy. You might taste pretty sweet."

There seemed to be truth to the expression about guys thinking with their dicks.

Bella's breath caught in her throat and she stiffened under me when I growled teasingly. "So, who's afraid of the big bad wolf?"

Her eyes were wide as she stared at me, wordlessly reminding me of the promise I gave her. I hovered over her, and the position I was in only made it worse. Even though I barely touched her I could feel her intensely. I wanted her. I wanted her so badly, but I was afraid to screw up again. So I played the best friend for her, pretending not to feel anything for her but camaraderie. Playfully growling and snarling, I nudged her cheek with my nose, eliciting laughter out of her.

"You are so funny, Jacob Black!" she yelled, giggling when I made sniffing noises and nuzzled my face in the crook of her neck like the dog I was. Oh God, she smelled so good. I didn't see anything amusing about this. It was only turning me on even more.

"Do I really look that funny to you, Isabella Swan?" I asked and looked her deeply in the eyes. Slowly I lowered my body, supporting my weight on my arms, until I was lying on top of her. Dammit! This was too good to be true.

Her eyes grew even bigger, and she snapped for air, smacking me on my chest. "Get off of me, you big fat boy."

Boy? Did she just say boy? "No." I whispered and pressed myself into her. Feel me, Bella. I'm all but a boy!

She exhaled shakily, half-laughing, half-wondering. Confusion was evident on her face. "Jacob?"

There it was again – the attraction I felt for her, the chemistry between us. "Bella." I shuddered when I felt the closeness between us, and how much she was with me right now.

I was absolutely sure that she was one hundred percent aware of me, that her attention was fixed on me, that she was open-minded.

Bella sighed and pressed her fragile body flush to mine. My heart picked up speed when she wrapped her arms around my neck. She was inviting me in, wasn't she? Full of hope, I bent down, waiting for her to stop me. Bella didn't, and that was all I needed.

My lips met hers, and my heart was about to jump out of my chest. Finally! I was finally going to kiss Bella again, and when she moved her lips to answer my kiss I was in heaven. I propped up on my elbows and with my one hand I cupped her face, feeling her melting into my touch.

"Oh—" She sighed, snuggling her face into my hand, and fisted her hands in my hair.

I didn't hesitate then to deepen the kiss. She tasted so sweet, when I sucked her bottom lip in and slightly nibbled at it. "Bells," I moaned as I savoured her taste and wanted to taste so much more of her, wishing to never have to stop again.

She sighed again and she was tensing. I opened my eyes to look at her. Her brows were furrowed, and I could tell something wasn't right. I caressed her cheek with my thumb and brushed over her lips in the attempt to bring her attention back to me – but she was shutting down. I could literally see the iron gate to her heart closing, and a little tear rolled down her cheek.

"You okay, Bells?" I asked, feeling anger creeping along my body. _What's wrong now?_

Bella just nodded and pressed her face into my chest. Had I overstepped her thoroughly drawn line? I didn't feel guilty—we both had wanted this! So what was going on with her? Almost painfully her hands twisted in my hair as she practically crawled into me, and then I knew instinctively that whatever it was that made her cry, it had to do with that damn bloodsucker. Again!

I bit on my lip angrily. That leech had the frigging ability to stand in the way even when he wasn't here at all. It was like she was like possessed. Could leeches actually bewitch people?

The flood gates opened and gasping sobs rocked her small body. I was caught in my fury. I utterly hated that he caused her tears once more, and that he somehow managed to keep her from moving on. Why couldn't she get him out of her head, dammit?

"There, there." I mumbled like an idiot and patted her head. Here I was, playing the best friend again, while I was so madly in love with her, up to the point that it hurt, but as usual I relieved the shit end of the stick. Instead of kissing her I was soothing her and listening to her rambling. I let her cry her little heart out with no clue if she would ever be coming around. I was pathetically jealous and pissed off likewise. Why did it happen again? Why did I make her cry every time we kissed? If Cullen had been here, I gladly would have ripped his non-existent heart out.

"Bella?" I finally asked her when she didn't stop crying. I heard what she was mumbling, while sobbing into my chest.

_'I loved him so much,'_ she cried and, _'how could he leave me like that?'_ I should have been satisfied hearing her accuse him, but I wasn't since it was not fury that made her speak like this but desperation. _'Why did he do this to me?'_ and _'I miss him so much.'_ cut through me like a knife. _'Did he ever love me the way I loved him?'_ finally was like getting whipped, her affirmation of for him sending painful jolts across my heart.

I was getting angry at myself now. I could have spared us what we were going through right now. I should have considered how broken she was before I went all needy over her. I worked my lip, realizing it only when I sensed the coppery taste of my blood.

Bella clung to me for dear life. It was as if she was drowning in the cold and dark water of the North Atlantic, getting pulled and tossed and finally washed away by the waves, and I was her saviour, the only anchor that kept her alive.

When the fury waned, I was starting to accept that I could do nothing but give her my arms to hold on. In fact, I wanted to be her anchor. I wanted to be the person that held her and kept her alive. No matter what it would cost me, how hard I would have to fight to have her happy again and alive – I would be there.

What felt like eons later, her tears finally stopped and she looked up at me. Her face was blotchy and stained with tears, but nevertheless she was still beautiful. I sighed with relief, and she hugged me in response.

Bella lifted her hand and cupped my cheek. When she touched me my skin started to tingle again. I didn't dare to move an inch, afraid she would lose it again. Her hand wandered to my chin, her touch featherlike but able to set me on fire.

_Um, what was she going to do?_ My heart leaped into my throat. I was full of hope that she would go on and touch me more, and that it would mean she had finally come around. Her finger brushed over my lips, and the yearning in my belly increased. Just when I thought I couldn't stop myself from not touching her back, Bella wriggled up in my embrace, moving along my body, until we were same eye level.

_Bella,_ I begged internally, _don't you feel what you do to me? _

She obviously didn't realize how much she affected me when her slender body moved against mine. Her fingertips traced the taut muscle strands in my neck, making me shiver. My heart thundered wildly in my chest, but I was still as a statue, trying not to ruin this precious moment. But as soon as her lips were on mine I couldn't hold back anymore. My hands moved from her back to her hips and finally wrapped around her waist, pulling her closer.

But then a thought struck me. How long would I have to compete with the memory of her leech? What exactly was Bella seeing in me? Was I replacing him or did she really want me, Jacob? My blood ran cold. I had always been so sure about myself, stone confident that I would win Bella over and make her love me, but now that she was kissing me out of her free will I was teetering on the brink, reeling from self-doubts. Was I being too impatient? Did I want too much at once? What was going on with me?

Wasn't this pathetic? The bloodsucker wasn't even here in personal, but nevertheless I was fighting a battle against him without knowing if I was able to stand a chance against him.

"Bella," I whispered hoarsely, pulling out of her kiss. "Bells, I have to ask for something…"

I longed to touch her, to kiss her, but I had to clear up something first.

_Focus, Jake!_ I reprimanded myself.

Bella squirmed out of my embrace and sat up, way too fast for my liking. Hadn't the kiss affected her like it had affected me? I couldn't read the expression on her face. Did I see rejection? She wouldn't think I was rejecting her? Dammit, I'd rather I could really show her how much I was in love with her.

She watched me, trying to figure out what I was thinking, and I took her hand. I figured I'd better get over with what I had to say, no matter how painful it might be for us, and how afraid she was of what was to come. I could see this in her darkening eyes, staring clouded and haunted into my face.

"Bells, I know how much Cullen still means to you, and I know that you're thinking that no other man can ever take his place in your heart," I said hoarsely, wincing.

She grabbed my hand harder, holding on to me, her breathing ragged.

Looking into her eyes I amended, "but I can deal with that, because I truly believe that the human heart can love more than once." She had to realize that the thing between her and the bloodsucker was over. Over, like over and out. "I know what you were going through. I have been there for you. You know that, don't you?"

Bella sniffed and nodded.

I put her hand over my heart. "Bells, you see more than a friend in me," I said, matter-of-factly, although I was all churned up inside. "And what's better than to love your best friend?"

She gave me a half-hearted smile and nodded again.

I waited for a moment to collect my thoughts. "I'll be there for you. All the time. As your best friend. And as your boyfriend, your partner, your man."

Her breath caught in her throat and her hand was trembling in mine.

"That is, if you want me like that--" I had to stop, and when I looked up at her, I saw that new tears were leaking out of Bella's eyes. "If you let me, Bells, if you just let me be there for you, I will do everything I can to help you become the Bella again we all know and love. But still, there is one thing I do demand from you."

A lump formed in my throat. It was now or never. I wanted to let her know what would work with me and what wouldn't. I was madly in love, fatally attracted to her, but I just couldn't betray myself. I realized what had made me so insecure before. I could live with the knowledge that maybe I would always be just the second best for her. I was selfish enough to hold on to the little that she was offering me, and I definitely couldn't demand that she loved me regardless and with the same amount of intensity that she felt for her leech.

Although my stomach twisted and churned, I said what I had to say. "Don't ever pretend to love me because feeling obligated to love me." I almost choked the words out. "If you should realize one day that things didn't work out the way you imagined, tell me. Spare me from lies and hypocrisy."

She swallowed hard, and so did I. I wanted honesty even when it would hurt. I wanted to know when her heart was still longing for her damned leech. I also wanted to be sure that, when she opened up and answered my love, she would truly love me.

"Bella, I want you to love me for the man that I am. I will not function as a replacement for Cullen. I want you to see me. Try it, Bella. At least, try it." I wrapped my hand around her neck and bending my head to place my forehead against hers, I rasped, "Will you promise?"

I was waiting. My heart was beating wildly, my blood pumping violently through my veins.

Bella was silent. She stared at the ground, her eyes wide open and more tears pouring down her cheeks. What was she thinking? What would she do? What would she say?

With each minute that passed I became more impatient. Would she turn me down and leave me standing?

Finally she looked at me with those huge brown eyes that seemed to look right into my soul and said, barely louder than a whisper, "I promise, Jake."

We didn't talk much more that day anymore. When we eventually walked back to my place she put her books back into her backpack, and I escorted her to her truck. A minute of awkward silence later I took her into a comforting hug. "Come here."

She fell into my embrace.

I hugged her tightly, taking her scent in, feeling her soft body against me. "Friends, Bells. Remember!"

She stepped back, nodded and nibbled at her lip. "See you, Jake." Then she climbed into her truck and left.

When I couldn't see the truck anymore I went inside. My dad had his chair rolled to the window. I guess he had been watching us and came to his own conclusion, because he raised one eyebrow questioningly.

Plopping down on our couch, I rubbed my hands over my face and decided to talk to him. I had a strong connection to my father, always feeling better after a serious man-to-man talk with him. Maybe he could give me advice today as well.

"She's not the Bella I've known all my whole life. Since the bloodsucker left her…" I growled in frustration and shook my head. "I don't know what he did to her, but… Dad, it's as if her spirit is gone. She's just, um, like, broken." The words just poured out of me, and then I told him everything about today and what had happened weeks ago.

"Love can do that to a woman or a man… Love can really break you, my son," my Dad said wisely. Love! I almost snorted disgustedly. _How could someone love a vampire? What's to love about a vampire anyway? _

"Dad, we just kissed and then boom… out of the blue, she starts crying. It's as if there's some nasty spell hanging over her." I could feel my temper rising and I forced myself to calm down. "It really, really wears me out seeing Bells like this. I can't do a thing to make her feel better. We move one step forward and she takes two steps back. It's always him. Always in the way." I buried my face in my hands and sighed. The fury was boiling in me like viscous lava.

"Are you in love with her?" my father asked. He should know the answer, shouldn't he?

"I've been in love with her all my life," I said enthusiastically. "Dad, she must feel something. Every time we kiss… it's just so…" I rambled on, slightly losing my trail of thoughts.

"You're seeing stars, the earth shifting under your feet or something?" Dad mocked me, but I had the feeling there was more behind what he was saying. He had never been that sarcastic before; something was eating at him.

"No, it's more like…" I didn't know how to describe what I felt for Bella. Having butterflies chasing in my stomach? The slow burning, the intense heat all over my body as soon as she touched me? That I got hard every time I was close to her as the most obvious reaction? I definitely could not tell my father that!

"More like what?" Dad's eyes stared at me in a way that made me feel most uncomfortable. "You wanting to shove your dick into her?"

My jaw dropped to the ground. "You're kidding me, Dad!" I hissed. "How can you talk about it like that?" He really got me furious. How could he degrade us like that?

My father seemed totally unimpressed by my outburst. Nevertheless his voice was intense and powerful. "Let me talk straight, boy… Bella's dear to me. Kinda like one of my daughters. I don't want her to be hurt again."

A lump formed deep down in my throat. "I don't intend to hurt her, Dad. I could never ever do that to her." The lump was swept away by boiling anger. "What are you thinking?" I suddenly yelled at my father. I was overwhelmed by my own feelings. He had never given me a speech like that, and I was more than disappointed. I was seeking advice, and what did I get? He jumped to conclusions that were not true and mocked me on top of that.

"Look, Jacob. I'm sorry. I was too harsh." My father rubbed over his eyes. He suddenly looked very tired. "Sit down."

I didn't want to sit down. I'd rather pace the room, and much more I felt like phasing and running off. But I couldn't do that to him. I loved him too much. I planted my butt on the seat next to him.

"Jacob, you need to keep in mind that you could imprint one day," he said, his voice becoming heavy and strained.

"Not me!" I was shouting again before I could even think. I was so sick of all that wolf stuff. Of course, I knew about imprinting. I was told about it on one of the first days after my transformation, and I had already learned that nothing good came out of it, not when knowing our Alpha's story.

"Calm down, Jacob." My father suddenly had my wrist in a vice-like grip. "You should consider it at least! It could happen to you. There's no guarantee." He had his face right before my eyes. There was no chance to escape his words.

I balled my hands into fists and gritted my teeth. "I'd rather choose who I fall in love with." I growled. "And what should I do instead? Break up with Bella? Leave her all alone? Practise celibacy? Just because I maybe could eventually, possibly imprint ONE DAY??? You can forget about that!"

Dad wouldn't give up his grip on my hand. He pressed hard, and it actually hurt. _Dammit!_ "But if it happens, you would leave her. Just like Sam left Leah. The imprint pull is too strong. I've seen it in Sam. I don't want to see you being forced to leave Bel—" His voice broke. He pressed his lips into a hard line.

There was that lump again in my throat. I hadn't been firsthand witness to what had happened to Sam and Leah, but I had seen enough in Leah's and Sam's minds. And seeing my father's emotions right now, it must have been more than ugly. I suddenly felt uneasy.

"I want Bella, and I only want her. I'm not giving her up because of a maybe-imprint that could happen to me one day." I nevertheless repeated stubbornly. "I've hurt her so much already when Sam forced me to stay away from her. I won't do this again, Dad. I won't waste my life or her life in waiting for something that might not even happen." I swore to myself that if it really should imprint on some random chick, I would fight the imprint. I only wanted to be with Bella. We belonged together.

My father sighed deeply. "Being an Elder I'd rather you stopped anything that would be more than just friendship." He looked sad, but he loosened his grip on my wrist. "But as your father…" His stern face softened. He even patted my hand in a soothing manner. "Keep trying, Jacob. I can see how much you mean to her. Every time she walks through our door, her face lights up as if she has seen the sun for the very first time."

I stared at him disbelievingly. What was this sudden change of mind? It was lost on me.

"You're good for her, Jacob. Don't lose hope and just be patient. If that is what you really want." Dad turned around and rolled away, and I stayed in the kitchen considering my options.

What I had been complaining about in the first place suddenly seemed not so important at all. So things weren't progressing at a speed I found appropriate? I could deal with that. But imprinting on some other girl? I huffed. Not if I could help it. Patience had never been a virtue I possessed. But I would try.

I hid myself in my room this day, turning on the music, the bass pounding aggressively, as loud as my oversensitive hearing would allow until I wasn't thinking anymore and my heart beat in the hard rhythm of the music. I wouldn't even have recognized a vampire army approaching in my frontyard, but I didn't care. I needed to drown out my thoughts

Again, weeks passed by slowly. Bella would be in La Push each day or every other day, depending on the amount of her homework or the hours she worked at Newton's.

I found myself a part-time job at the La Push Resort, where I gave guided tours to the Resort tourists through the La Push forests. I wasn't so fond of those pale faces. They were thinking slowly, stomping through the forest like a herd of oxen, thoughtlessly breaking boughs and frightening the wildlife. The men were talking shit, their wives (mostly twice as old as I was or even more) shamelessly devouring me with their eyes as if I was something to eat, and their daughters, while never tiring of making goo-goo eyes at me, practically wore nothing but belly tees and short skirts – even in the woods, even when it rained, even when they were freezing their asses off. How stupid could you get?

But it was a well-p-p-aid job, especially since I went home with generous tips - money which we badly needed since I was eating us out of house and home and ripping more clothes than I could actually put into the washer. Anyway, the money was welcomed and my father was relieved that I didn't just hang around sulking.

Bella's condition was wearing on me. She still had nightmares. More than once I had heard her screaming in the night when I was patrolling around her house. More than once her eyes would glaze over in the middle of whatever we were doing, and then she would start crying or just hug her chest as if she was afraid to fall apart.

During all those weeks I kept my hands to myself and never ever touched Bella in any other way than strictly friendly, and even that I reduced to a minimum. It was killing me, now that I knew how wonderful and arousing it was to be touching and kissing her. It was like I was obsessed with doing that with her again; it was haunting me in my dreams. There was this chemistry between us, that strong attraction that drew us to each other, but I didn't give in. I knew that one harmless touch would probably turn into more, and I felt that Bella still wasn't ready for that.

And then, as fate willed, Bella called me on my phone in the early morning hours of the first day of her finals, and my self-restriction faltered mercilessly…


	5. Progressing

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

_**A/N: **_**_A/N: A million thanks to Project Team Beta and their awesome betas, namely HollettLA and MarillaShirley, for working over this chapter. I'm happy to announce that I improve on comma use, but I still suck at various other stuff... I promise to be better next time. ;-)_**

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**_Chapter 5 - Progressing_**

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**_~Bella~_**

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"No! This can't be happening!" I screamed, frustrated and desperate. I had to leave for school and I just realized my car wouldn't start.

I tried to get it started repeatedly, but nothing had happened. Today of all days, on the first day of my finals while I needed to be more punctual than ever, that old piece of scrap metal left me in the lurch. Furiously, I kicked my foot against the tire, hurting my toe in the process. I really, really needed to get to school _right now._

I jumped up and down on one leg, considering my options of how to get to school, but neither Charlie – who was attending a training in Hokiam - nor any of my classmates – there was only Angela I actually would consider asking, but she lived too far away at the other end of the town - would make it in time. Only one option was left. Jacob! I could only hope that Charlie would understand that we had to use Jake's motorcycle in this emergency.

I hobbled inside the house, grabbed the phone and frantically pushed in Jacob's telephone number. _Please, be home,_ I prayed silently while the phone was connecting. The phone rang. Once, twice. Then, finally, someone answered the call.

Jacob's husky voice sounded through the receiver. "Black."

I couldn't even make myself feel relieved. I was close to hysterics and I couldn't help but to scream into the phone, "Jacob! My car broke down. I won't make it in time. Can you come with the bike?"

He only said one word and I knew everything would be all right. "Sure."

"Hurry, Jake!" I yelled and slammed the receiver down. I grabbed my bag and left the house. After locking the door properly I ran towards Jake, ignoring the still throbbing toes in my left foot.

I was grateful to have him as a friend. He was so understanding and patient with my ongoing _Edward_ issues. Although, since I had embarrassed myself with another breakdown after our little encounter on the beach a few weeks ago, he was more reserved – which confused me a lot.

I still had ugly nightmares. Above all, there was this one dream, where Jacob kills Edward, and it was incredibly disturbing. Even though it was just a product of my overactive fantasy, it was enough to make me scream in horror whenever I dreamt it. Meanwhile, I had forced myself into sleeping with my pillow over my head, so I wouldn't keep Charlie from sleeping when I woke up screaming bloody murder.

I shoved the dark thoughts aside when I finally heard the bike approaching and Jake came around the corner. I waved 'Hello' and ran even faster.

He really was a glorious sight. The bike looked like a play toy beneath his huge body. Jake hit the brake, and the bike spun around, creating a Hollywood-style u-turn. He stopped in front of me, and I climbed up behind him.

At once, I was engulfed by his searing heat, which did nothing to improve the fact that I was already sweating from running all the way up here. "Go, Jake! GO!" I blurted out, completely out of breath and somehow close to fainting. I wrapped my arms around his waist and pressed my hands flat on his taut stomach. I sighed in relief and put my face into his back, secretly sniffing at him. He always smelled so good. Being close to him was like coming home. It made the anxiety, nervousness and the sharp pain in my chest go away.

"You okay, Bells?" Jake asked, concerned, as I was panting heavily.

"Yes," I assured him. "I just ran so fast. Ignore it." I opened my hand from its firm grip on his waist and waved my hand dismissively. "Just go, Jake, please."

Jake opened the throttle, letting the engine roar angrily before he raced off towards Forks.

I clung really tightly to him and shut my eyes. Damn, he was fast. "Show off." I mumbled, but smiled into his shirt.

"Heard you," Jake answered and leaned into a bend.

I squealed and gripped him tighter. I felt safe though. He laughed at me, and I enjoyed being so close to Jacob.

The ride to school gave me some time to think. Somehow I was split in two. One side of me felt whole and safe being in Jake's proximity. The other side though had a tendency to freak out each time we kissed. I was nervous around him and only the fact that he couldn't kiss me when I was sitting behind him on the motorcycle allowed me to relax into his body.

It wasn't that I didn't like his kisses. The two times I kissed Jake before, I had heard Edward's voice in my head and that creeped me out. It was embarrassing and it was disturbing to relive memories of _him_ when I was in Jake's arms.

Maybe I just wasn't ready for the next step, or maybe I should actually take the next step and wait for the things to happen. Jake had asked, what's better than being in love with your best friend? And he had a point there. You knew your best friend really well, you trusted him fully and with your whole heart…

Jake abruptly hit the brakes and I was pulled out of my thoughts. We had reached the main street, which was the reason why he slowed down. You could never be sure if the Forks Police Department was radar-monitoring the road and we definitely didn't need to be caught violating speed limits. Charlie would kill us.

When we stopped in front of Forks High School, there were still a few minutes left, but I was anxious to get into my class and so I jumped off the bike hurriedly. "Thanks, Jake! You saved my live!" I said, still out of breath, and hugged him quickly.

As I turned around to leave, he reached out and wrapped his hand around my wrist. Before I could even blink, he pulled me close to him and placed a kiss on my lips.

"You're welcome. Good luck," he said, grinning broadly as he let me go.

For a moment I stared at him as if I was paralyzed, but then I ran into the school building.

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xoxoxox

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I had to concentrate really hard to focus for my tests. Over and over again my hand moved to my lips where Jake had kissed me earlier. Though it hadn't been much more than a peck, it had been so unexpected it threw me off balance. For weeks Jake had been avoiding any bodily contact. So why did he choose to kiss me now?

He wasn't giving me the silent treatment - not at all. We still did everything what we did before, but he wasn't physical anymore. He, who used to show his affection through small nudges, holding hands and sharing hugs, would now pull back whenever he thought he had crossed a line or invaded my personal space. In fact, the peck he gave me earlier was the first sign of affection in weeks.

I missed it. I missed being embraced when he greeted me. I missed leaning into him when we were sitting on our driftwood tree at First Beach or were watching a movie at my house. I missed all those small, miniscule touches that told me everything was okay between us. Because apparently something wasn't.

Truthfully, I did make me feel insecure. I wondered if I had scared Jake away with my mood swings and if he preferred to rather stay just friends instead of moving our relationship to another level. Curiously enough, I didn't like the thought of being just friends at all, even though I still wasn't sure about my feelings.. Did I really see only the best friend in him? Or was I falling in love with him already? And the kiss, why had me kissed me earlier?

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xoxoxox

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When the last test for the day was over, I headed out of the school building, not exactly sure how I was going to get home. I probably could ask Angela if she would give me a lift, but then I saw my truck standing in the parking lot.

Jacob leaned against it and grinned broadly when he saw me coming. He had his arms crossed over his chest and his long legs stretched out, completely comfortable with himself. He looked mesmerizing; despite the fact his orange shirt and cut-off jeans were stained with car grease and dirt.

My heart started to beat wildly in my chest, my hands became sweaty, and suddenly I had butterflies doing a happy dance in my stomach. _Oh, hello! _

"Hi, Bells! How was your day? How did you do?" Jake sauntered over to me and took my bag from my shoulder.

"Okay so far… But Algebra was kinda tricky," I answered, my heart still wildly thumping away. At that moment I became aware of the curious looks of Jessica Stanley and Mike Newton, as Jessica bent down to whisper something in Mike's ear. I writhed uncomfortably under their glare. "So, you fixed my car already?" I asked Jake, trying to ignore them.

"It was nothing. Only took me a few minutes," Jacob answered, the smile never leaving his face, but then he found me nervously staring at Jessica. "Don't," he said quietly and rubbed my back soothingly. I swear, Michael's jaw dropped to the pavement.

We stopped at my truck. Jake opened the door and, grabbing my hips with his hands, he lifted me up into the driver's seat. He was all business, his touch did not give away if he liked being close me or not.

I frowned, ignoring the strange feeling in my gut, and I blurted out, "Seriously, Jake. It's nice having a personal mechanic, but you shouldn't do that on school days. You skipped school today, didn't you?" I felt in order to seem responsible, I had to at least ask him about it, but my inner self was positively thrilled that Jake found it more important to fix my truck than to go to school.

"Keep this private, Bells!" He winked and closed the door, smiling mischievously. He walked around the car and hopped into the passenger's seat. He leaned closer and my heartbeat accelerated again, leaving me hoping that he would kiss me again_. _He fastened his seat belt, but nothing more happened_._

My hands trembled. I was so nervous, it was unbelievable. "What was wrong?" I asked in an effort to distract myself, as I turned the ignition and eased truck out of the parking lot.

"Some marten bit through one of the wires. That caused the trouble. I had to replace he wire and that was it all about." Jake tapped his long fingers against his thighs. I couldn't stop staring.

I nodded, having problems concentrating on the other parked cars. "You know, gnawers really suck. Recently one damaged Charlie's car, too."

"And ugh, let me tell you. They really stink!" Jacob wrinkled his nose disgustedly and waved his hand as if to dispel an imaginary odor.

I laughed at his grimacing. "I just hope it stays away from my car from now on."

"I took care of that too," Jake said absentmindedly as he watched me maneuver the truck onto the street.

I winced. "Did you kill it?" I couldn't imagine that he had done that, but after all, he was a werewolf. Wouldn't he make short shrift of that little furry beast? What did I know?

Jacob rolled his eyes. "No, Bells. I didn't even try to trap it. I've got more effective ways to deal with overbold and bothersome creatures."

I frowned and asked, "What did you do instead?"

"I marked your truck, what else? Those gnawers can't stand my scent," Jacob explained laughing.

My jaw dropped open. _He did what? Mark my truck?_ Slowly my mind came up with a most embarrassing picture and I shrieked disgustedly. "You did what?" I stomped the brakes and the car came to a sudden stop. I ignored Taylor honking the horn of his van since my truck now blocked his way. I glared at Jake who was shaking with laughter.

"Bells,if you're thinking what I believe you're thinking right now, then you really have got a vivid imagination!" He roared, tears spilling down his face. "You didn't think I peed on your car, did you?"

My face spoke volumes and my cheeks shaded into a bright crimson. "Jake, I thought… I mean. I just—" _Hmpf._

Jacob's booming laughter thundered through my car and I was sure Taylor parked behind us must see it shaking all over. "I'm not a stray dog, Bells. I don't mark territories."

I couldn't help it, but his laughter was infectious and my lips twisted into a huge grin until I couldn't hold it in anymore and giggled and laughed along with him.

A relentless knocking brought our attention back to where we were. "Would you mind clearing the road?" Taylor complained, annoyed.

Still giggling, I finally managed to shift into first gear and get the truck rolling. The ride home was filled with the laughter and snorts of Jacob and myself. When my home came into sight, my belly and my cheeks actually were hurting from the constant amusement.

I parked my truck in its usual spot when we arrived at my house. "Do you want to come in for a couple of minutes?" Although I had to study for the next day's final, I didn't want him to leave yet. I grabbed my bag and walked towards my house.

"Sure." He shoved his hands into his pants pockets and followed me.

"So, Jake, how did you mark my truck then?" I asked him. Despite our earlier laughter about it, I was still anxious to know what he'd done.

He shrugged his shoulders. "I put one of my shirts under the hood. That's all. I swear." He started to chuckle once more.

I slapped my hand to my forehead. "That makes sense."

Jacob rolled his eyes again and shook his head. "Bells, Bells, Bells," he said teasingly, but then his expression became serious. He followed me into the kitchen, where I was already raiding the fridge in an attempt to find us something to eat. Jake leaned against the counter and watched me intently.

"Thanks for fixing my truck, Jake." I stopped at what I was doing, walked over to him and spontaneously hugged him. I truly shocked myself, but he was shocked even more.

.

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Slowly, he wrapped his arms around my waist and hugged me back in response. "You're welcome." All too soon, he dropped his arms, stepped back, and put his hands into his pockets again.

I turned around, trying to not show him how awfully rejected I felt. Why couldn't things be like they were before our first kiss? When did it become so confusing? I felt drawn to him like a moth was drawn to the light, yet I was afraid of my feelings. Even though I knew how good he was for me, and that I could possibly heal and recover from my broken heart if I only opened up to him fully.

I felt his eyes on my back, while I searched the fridge. It made me nervous. "Sandwiches, Jake?" I asked with an unsettled voice, pulling out bread, ham and cheese and putting it on the counter. Surely, he would be hungry and the least I could do after he had fixed my truck was offer him something to eat.

"No, thanks," he answered and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "But you go ahead…"

I stared at him, dumbfounded. Jake never ever missed a chance to shove food into his mouth, especially not when I made it for him. Slowly and deliberately, I put everything back into the fridge, waiting for the moment when he would stop me and tell me he had changed his mind. That didn't happen and I shut the door to the fridge with a little bit more force than I intended. If he wouldn't eat… well, I wasn't that hungry and the mood took away my appetite anyway.

I shouldn't be irritated that Jake was holding back. I was the one that used to have nervous break-downs whenever he tried to kiss me. I huffed, angry at myself.

"You have to eat something," Jake said eventually, grabbing the peach that was lying on the counter and tossed it over to me. I actually caught it. _Wow._

I held the fruit in my hands, but I couldn't bring myself to bite into it. My stomach rolled and I felt slightly queasy. The situation was getting on my nerves.

"Eat." Jake didn't give in. "I bet it's good. It smells inviting." Jake flared his nostrils and inhaled deeply.

I brought the peach to my nose and breathed the sweet, fruity scent of it. The aroma was delicious. "Mmm, you're right." I hummed approvingly and then heartily bit into it. The fresh sweet juice filled my mouth and pleased my taste buds. I closed my eyes, chewing on the tender fruity flesh and sucking up the juice.

When I opened my eyes again, Jake was standing directly before me. Startled, I jerked back, dripping the juice over my chin and onto my hand. "Oops," I muttered and lifted my hand to suck the juice from my fingers.

Jake's hand wrapped around my wrist and held it in place. "Let me help you with that," he whispered huskily. "You don't mind, do you?"

"Oh, God." I gasped as he lifted my hand to his lips and licked the juice from my palm. My heart stopped and then burst into flames. Suddenly, my body was on fire and my heart started racing away.

He looked me deeply into my eyes, and I took in a shaky breath, leaning closer into him, offering him the peach. "Why don't you have a taste?"

Jake's eyes widened, the pupils dilated. Unexpectedly, he stepped back, stuttering a bit when he said, "It's yours."

"No, no. You can have it. It's the last one anyway, I should share." I stretched my hand out, holding the peach in the palm of my hand.

"Okay, if you say so," he said, dragging out the 'okay' with a hint of a smile in his voice and snatched the fruit out of my hand, swiftly finishing it off. He smiled smugly. "Peach is my favorite…" Then he threw the pit carelessly over his shoulder and still managed to hit the sink.

I found myself staring into his dark smoldering eyes, charmed by his impish attitude and mischievous smile and a tingling spread through my body.

Jake extended his arm, grabbed a kitchen towel from a peg and took my hand. He cleaned my hand and then he wiped my chin, letting the towel follow the juicy trail down to my throat. I shuddered at the feeling of his light touches.

"I want to kiss you, Bells." Jacob said, his voice becoming deeper and he looked at me with wonder in his eyes.

My head was trapped between his big hands, the heat searing through me. I was confused. How could eating a peach lead to something like _this?_ But I wanted it, quite badly in fact, and so I nodded, forgetting my apprehension and everything around me.

I knew what was coming, what to expect by now. I wasn't an experienced kisser. But, good Lord, the kisses I had shared with Edward were child's play compared to the kisses Jake gave me. With Jake it was fireworks and flames and butterflies. On top of that, everything came so naturally, and I was amazed how strongly I reacted to him. There was this chemistry, the attraction to each other. I couldn't fool myself anymore. I definitely was attracted to Jacob, but was it enough? I was still uncertain what I actually wanted him to be for me. Best friend? Boyfriend? How far was I willing to go?

Jacob sighed. Ever so slowly he bent down and, in response, I lifted my head to grant him more access. His lips lingered over mine for the longest time, I thought I surely would faint out of anticipation. He studied my face, looked into my eyes. Was he afraid to cause another one of my crying fits?

I braced myself for the familiar onslaught of unwanted memories and promised to myself that I would ignore them this time. I stretched up onto my tip-toes and wrapped my arms around his neck. "Jake–" I didn't want to wait any longer. I wanted this – the kiss and the embrace, and I wanted to feel something other than desperate and numb. I wanted to be happy and alive.

He took his time, though. Ignoring my plea, he closed the distance inch by inch until our lips finally met. He very lightly kissed me one time, and then a second time, brushing his lips over mine, before deliberately adding more pressure. He wove one of his hands into my hair. The other hand moved down to the small of my back and from there slid to my waist. His thumb brushed over my belly and the heat emanating from that spot found its way through my whole body.

I could still taste the flavor of the peach on our tongues and now it mixed with Jake's very own taste. He moaned when I buried my hands in his hair, and I felt his heart pounding inside his chest. I realized that I had done that to him, and that knowledge made me feel strong and powerful. The warm and fuzzy feeling in my stomach grew when he whispered my name, and I shivered. My hands slid down his neck to his broad shoulders, and I wrapped my fingers around his upper arms, exploring his well-defined biceps. _Oh God, _washe built.

Jake grasped my hips, lifted me up and sat me down onto the kitchen table. His lips crashed down on mine, becoming more intense and urgent. He was so hot, literally; his skin was burning under my fingertips.

His thighs pushed against my knees, and I opened my legs invitingly. It felt completely natural, and I was surprised at how comfortable I felt in doing so. Jake stepped between my thighs as if he belonged there. All coherent thought left me as his tongue trailed over my lips and his hands roamed over my waist, my back, my thighs.

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We didn't hear Charlie open the front door until he slammed it shut. With a start we broke apart and I jumped back to my feet. My knees wobbled and my cheeks burned.

"Wolf hearing?" I hissed at Jake.

He shrugged his shoulders and whispered back, "I was otherwise occupied."

"Isabella Swan!" Charlie yelled. His face, fiery red already, turned into an angry shade of purple.

I had never seen Charlie so upset before and I realized the upcoming minutes would be horrible. "Dad?" I squeaked and didn't dare to look at Charlie as I adjusted my clothes and my hair.

"Are you crazy?" Charlie fumed, not bothering to take off his uniform. _This is going to be ugly._ Charlie crossed the space between front door and kitchen in a second and stopped in front of Jacob. I really thought that Charlie would run him over. "How dare you go racing like a madman through the town with my girl on your bike?"

Although he needed to tilt his head back to look into Jakes eyes, his authority was absolute.

"My car broke down, Dad." I explained with a shaky voice as I stepped between them.

Jake said, "I just brought her to school on time, Chief Swan!" He took my hand and pressed it reassuringly.

Charlie turned around and took in a deep breath, ignoring Jake completely. "You should have called me on my cell phone, Isabella," he yelled, impervious to our arguments.

It made me upset that Charlie refused to hear us out. "You wouldn't have been here in time anyway, and I would have been too late for my finals." I shouted back as tears of fury welled up in my eyes.

Jake seemed uncomfortable that Charlie had reprimanded me in front of him. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "I'm sorry, Chief Swan," Jake said, trying to take the sting out of Charlie's anger, and hung his head in shame. He blushed up to his ears. "It won't happen again…"

I wasn't buying it. Jake would never give up the bike. Motorcycling was one of the things that bound us together. I noticed that he crossed his index and middle finger of his free hand behind his back and I suppressed a giggle.

Charlie frowned and glared at our clasped hands. As Jacob let go of my hand and hugged my waist instead, he choked. "Won't happen again?" I could tell by the look in his eyes that the shit was about to hit the fan. He thundered, "Does this include making a meal out of her on my kitchen table? Get out of here, boy, before I forget about my good manners!"

Jacob hesitated, obviously bracing himself to protect me from my father's wrath. His hand gently stroked my back.

My eyes flitted between Jacob and my dad, and I stiffened when Charlie's eyes narrowed to slits. _Oh-oh. Here it comes! _

Charlie literally exploded. "Carry your rear parts through that very door, Jacob Black. Or I'll make you move."

I had the presence of mind to clasp my hand over my mouth before I grinned. Charlie would never be able to move Jake, if Jake wasn't willing to be moved. But of course, we couldn't let it go so far.

I nudged Jacob into his side, convincing him to leave. Jacob left swiftly but not without winking at me in a secret Good-bye.

Charlie groaned and fell on the chair next to the table. When he realized where he had placed himself, he flinched and took a deep breath. "How will I ever be able to sit here without thinking about you and him doing …" He made a gesture towards the table, "doing 'things' up here." He sighed heavily and blushed.

I blushed too. "Dad, actually," I stuttered embarrassed and blushed even more. "…actually nothing happened at all."

"Didn't look like nothing, Bella." Charlie looked into my eyes, but turned his head away again rather quickly. "It just freaks me out seeing my girl like that," he muttered, pressing his face into the palms of his hands. "It's not so long ago that you were my baby girl, asking me to tell you stories and kiss away the pain on your bruised knees."

"Oh, Dad…" I flinched and instantly felt sorry about my behavior and how I had disregarded his orders about the motorcycle. "Look, I'm sorry."

"Yes, you should be! I thought I had made my position clear." Charlie rubbed his eyes. He looked so tired. "It was irresponsible and dangerous. I don't like to think what might have happened! You have to promise me that you will never do this again."

I lowered my head and fidgeted with my fingers, mumbling quietly, "I can't promise you that, Dad. I've got my own bike already."

Charlie's head snapped up. His skin color turned into a deep shade of red again and he drew in a rough breath. "Bella!" His horrified expression made me jump. "How can you do this to me?"

"I'm having fun when I ride the bike. You just can't take it from me, Dad." I whined. "I promise to be careful." I resorted to pleas, hoping that it would help.

Charlie groaned. "No, Bella. I don't want you to ride bikes. I have seen too much… I couldn't live with myself if something bad happened to you." He pinched the bridge of his nose, not knowing how to deal with this situation. I had never been an unruly teenager and this was our first real fight.

"I learned how to handle it, Dad." My voice trembled despite my efforts to keep it steady. I would do anything to keep my bike which Jacob and I had kept thoroughly hidden in his garage, so Charlie would never find out. Riding it was so much more than just the fun or the thrill of it. Although initially I had only wanted to ride it to put myself in danger, so would be able to hear Edward's voice in my head, the bike was now my reminder of coming to life again. I wouldn't give the bike up. I just couldn't.

"Who taught you?" Charlie glared at me, trying to stare the truth out of me. I couldn't shake the feeling that I was under police interrogation.

"Jacob…" I whispered. The phrase 'If looks could kill' seemed tame compared to his expression. "I made him, Dad. It's not his fault." I cringed, but I was determined not to give in.

"How?" Charlie demanded to know. His eyes narrowed to slits as he waited for an answer.

"I gave him a bike, too. And I paid for the spare parts he needed to fix the bikes…"

Charlie's eyes widened. "Where did you get all the money from?" He shook his head back and forth in disbelief.

"I took some of the money I earned at Newton's for the spare parts. The bikes I got from the Markses. For free. They were glad to get rid of them." I didn't dare look up and into Charlie's eyes.

"You spent your College Fund?" Charlie threw his arms into the air dramatically.

"Not at all, Dad. I just took a bit," I defended myself. "I don't need that much money for college, Dad. I won't be going anywhere. I'll be staying in Forks. Attending Peninsula College. So it's just the fees. I wouldn't even have to pay for an apartment."

"Hmpf, " Charlie huffed. "I can't believe you just made all those decisions without asking me. I'm disappointed in you, Bella."

"I'm sorry, Dad." I was really ashamed. What had I been thinking? I should have told him first. But, I wouldn't let go of my bike without a fight. I gritted my teeth and clenched my hands into fists."Don't take my bike."

"How am I supposed to react, Bella? First you get a bike without asking my permission, then you're racing with Jacob, disregarding all speed limits. And when I come home…" I flinched. "I find you making out with him right in front of my eyes."

I hung my head in shame, but it was more for show. I didn't regret kissing Jake. "I'll be careful, please, Dad!" I said quietly, starting to suspect that the bike wasn't the main issue. He was worried that Jake and I would end up like him and Mom, parents too soon.

He was unyielding and with a stern voice he decided, "No, Bella. You're forbidden to ride your bike or to ride with Jacob on his."

"Dad, please," I whispered, feeling the tears well up in my eyes. "Don't do that to me."

Charlie jumped up and paced the kitchen. "Then tell me, Bella. What shall I do? What am I supposed to do?" His voice was getting loud again.

I felt horrible. "I don't know, Dad. There's never been a situation like this before…"

Charlie groaned and ran his hands through his hair. "Four weeks, Isabella. No bike. Same applies for Jacob. I'll tell Billy, of course." Charlie stopped in front of me. "Stand up."

I stumbled to my feet.

He grabbed my arms and looked me in the eyes. "But this is dependent on two conditions…"

I nodded cautiously. _And the conditions were?_

"First, you're going to buy protective clothing, including a jacket and a helmet."

My eyes flew open. I should wear a biker outfit? I would look so silly in it, but if he allowed me to ride my bike with these clothes on, then so be it. I nodded approvingly.

"Second, you take lessons with me." My heart was in my boots. "And Jacob will as well. I will not let you drive again until I can be sure you both know how to handle your bikes under all weather and road conditions. When the four weeks are over, I'll take some days off from work. We will do the training then."

I nodded again, a little stunned this time. _He wants to give us lessons?_

"And there is one more thing to say, Bella." Charlie wrinkled his nose and let go of me.

I stared at him with a frown. What else did he want?

"You and Jake…" He started to pace the kitchen again. "When I saw you…" He blushed but he seemed dead certain to let me know whatever he was thinking. "You two seemed quite…" he stuttered and finally choked out, "involved."

_Time for awkward sex-talk._ "Ah, Dad." I mumbled embarrassed. "I had The Talk with Mom already about five years ago. Can we just skip this, please?"

Charlie stared at the opposite wall. "No. I have a say in this as well. I'm responsible for you while you're living with me."

I shook my head in disbelief and buried my face in my hands. "This is so embarrassing, Dad," I groaned. "I'm eighteen, Dad. I can take good care of myself."

"If it is so embarrassing, maybe you're not ready for sex at all, Isabella Swan." Charlie put his hand over mine and made me look at him. "When we had you, we were still so young. I just want to make sure that you don't end up getting pregnant at such a young age. Not that I regret having you, don't get me wrong, but I'd rather you take your time and be careful."

"I know, Dad. Seriously. I will be responsible and careful. I promise!" I knew he was right. Even though I couldn't imagine having sex with Jacob yet, the least I could do was consider different kinds of birth control.

Charlie seemed to believe me. "Okay."

He walked into the living room, sank down onto the couch and switched the TV on.

I heaved a stuttering sigh of relief and started to prepare dinner.


	6. Difficulties of growing up

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Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

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**A million thanks to my amazing betas from Project Team Beta, KaylaCullen and SweetVenom69, for polishing that chapter. **

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**Chapter 6 – The difficulties of growing up…**

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_**~~Jacob~~**_

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I really didn't want to leave Bella's house. I thought about eavesdropping and sneaking through her window, instead of going home, but then I couldn't lurk around here like some stalker. Apart from that, I really had to go since I was on duty tonight. Besides, I knew that Bella could handle the situation with her dad very well without me.

While I was riding my bike home, which I had hidden behind some trees farther down the road, I couldn't help but dwell in the memories of our little encounter in her kitchen. All I wanted was to keep up my thoroughly built up self-restriction and my no touch/no kiss rule, but Bella had been so easy going today, smiling all the time. I swore, sometimes she had stared at me as if I was something to eat, but I didn't dare to wish that were true. I was dumbstruck when she hugged me as a thank-you out of free will.

I cracked when I watched Bella sucking her fingers clean. I didn't know what I had been thinking when I closed the distance between us and licked the peach juice from her hand. Instead of telling me that I was out of place, she had offered me the peach with that sultry hint in her voice and a hungry look in her eyes. I couldn't help but kiss her. Sparks were flying, and then suddenly she lay before me, on the kitchen table, responding to me freely. If Charlie hadn't interrupted… I didn't know if I would have been able to stop.

A wave of heat rushed through me when I thought about her fingers moving over my arms and shoulders, how she had arched into my touch…

At that moment, my front wheel collided with a stone and my bike wobbled like crazy and skidded off the road. "Shit," I muttered while manoeuvring my bike back onto the road. For the rest of the ride, I banned the distracting thoughts to the farthest corner of my mind.

After arriving back to La Push, I avoided to go home. I bet my left nut that Charlie had already called my dad and broke the news. Okay, maybe I was a coward, but I really wasn't in the mood to deal with another debate on how to behave myself around Bella.

I spent the rest of the afternoon at Embry's, watching those cheesy old Hollywood musicals he loved. I never understood his fascination with Gene Kelly and Frank Sinatra.

My dad was waiting on the porch when I finally arrived home. He was visibly annoyed.

"Good news spread fast," I mumbled to myself, although I knew that my old man would hear me anyway. He might not have been running on his two legs anymore, but his hearing was excellent.

"I'm really glad you're here finally," he said sarcastically, giving me the evil eye. He turned around and pushed his wheel-chair inside all by himself, refusing my help.

I headed straight into the kitchen, finding a large pot sitting on the stove. "Did you cook again, Dad?" I called out, becoming angry at myself for leaving him alone for so long today. He shouldn't have cooked when he was alone in the house. What if his arms suddenly became numb again? He wouldn't have been able to turn off the stove, let alone use the phone…

"Drop it, Jacob," my dad barked.

I winced and replied, "I'm not a dog you can order around."

"And I'm not senile. There are still things I can do on my own…" he said sharply, but then he softened his tone, "Sue made it. It's a stew. She brought it over earlier."

"Oh, okay," I mumbled, and set the table, while dad brought two cans of soda. We ate in silence, the upcoming conversation hanging over me like a dark cloud. After our meal, I cleaned the table and washed the dishes, eager to do anything but talk about what happened.

I never felt comfortable arguing with my dad, because we both had quite the tempers, and every so often, I seemed to search for a reason to argue with him. There were days when my father and I just couldn't be together without me getting upset for the slightest reasons. Maybe it was about the werewolf thing, maybe it was normal for teenagers to challenge their parents, to test how far they could go? "Okay, spit it out, old man," I said suddenly, not being able to stand the tension between us anymore.

Dad crossed his arms over his chest and started, "Charlie called…"

"I already figured that out. It's about the bike, huh?" I said over my shoulder, clenching the dishtowel into a tight ball.

He grunted something intelligible; anger was evident in his face.

"Listen, Dad, it was an emergency. Bella's car broke and…" I tried to explain, while I put the dishes into the cupboard.

Dad interrupted me before I could finish my sentence, "Jacob, I don't care. Didn't I warn you before?"

I threw the towel onto the counter and silently counted to ten. "I just helped her out," I said, accentuating each word, so he would understand what my intention was when I had picked Bella up for school.

Dad shook his head disbelievingly. "Charlie is strict about not allowing Bella to ride motorbikes, but yet, you decided to ignore it."

I felt my temper flaring up._ Why did these old guys make such a fuss about a dirt bike?_ It was the fastest way to get Bella to school. I couldn't race her on my back, but maybe I should suggest that to Charlie. I grinned for a second over my own thoughts, but under my dad's scrutinizing stare, my face fell.

Turning away from him, I grabbed the sink for purchase. I stared at the wall in front of me, feeling uncomfortable and cornered. The wolf within me didn't like being cornered. He pushed to come out and my body responded. I could feel my temper rising and noticed the heat crawling up my spine. "What do you want to hear from me, Dad? That I'm sorry? Look, I'm not. I wanted to help her. That's all. I didn't think about Charlie's restriction at that moment…"

Dad ignored my rant and continued, his voice becoming very quiet, "If I had known that you were fixing a bike for her in your garage, I never would have approved of it, Jacob."

_Uh, oh._ I didn't like the turn this was taking now. _That's not going to go well for me…_

Dad continued staring at me; I could feel his eyes bore into my back. When he continued, his voice was strained, "How many of our kids have we lost in the last ten years due to motorbike crashes? Tell me, Jacob."

"Three," I murmured, feeling guilt rise to the center of my chest.

"Would you mind giving me their names, Jacob?" he asked.

I gulped, visualizing those kid's faces. "Tom, Joey, and Melissa."

"And their families? Tell me their names." His voice was way too calm for my liking. Suddenly, I wished he would yell at me instead of making me recite their names. The thought of their broken families made my stomach roll.

"Young, Meyer, Foster," I answered him, the rolling turning into queasiness.

Dad rolled the wheel chair closer to where I was standing and grabbed my wrist. "I wouldn't have even minded if _you_ wanted to ride the bike. You're having fast reflexes, super healing abilities, and you need an outlet now that you're doing so much for your tribe. But to put a risk on Bella... I thought you were better than that. I'm disappointed in you, Jacob. Very disappointed." He added one more sentence, and I could tell how sad he was. "The worst part is that you did it behind my back, and you hid the bikes in the garage, knowing I couldn't get in there."

"I'm sorry, Dad. Really, I am," I mumbled, my voice catching in my throat. I felt like an ass and it was for good reason.

"Tell that to Charlie. If you were the one who crashed and hit your head on a stone, you probably would survive without severe damage, but Bella…" He let the words linger in the air.

Suddenly, images of Bella's accident ran through my mind. It could have gone bad- Really bad. I knew that, but ignored it and we continued riding our bikes – albeit not on that same day. "Bella's really good with her bike," I said, whether to silence my bad conscience or to appease my dad, I didn't know.

He wasn't convinced. "That's not the point, Jacob. Don't you get it? You two pulled that stunt regardless of Charlie's order. That's not something to take lightly." He raised his voice, and tightened his grasp around my wrist.

I yanked my hand away from his grip and replied ashamed, "I'm sorry. I'll make up for it."

He was right. Not about the bike ban in general – I would support Bella by all means, if she wanted to continue riding the bike - but about the secretiveness. I had used his inability to check on me in the garage against him, and had taken advantage of his trust, which I was really, honestly sorry about it. Even though I was grown taller, obviously didn't mean that I was grown up. It didn't mean that I was safe from making mistakes. I screwed up big-time, and felt terrible because of it. It would have been wiser to think it through first, and I should have known that my actions probably would backfire on me.

Willing to make up for it, I crouched down, brought myself to eye level with him, and declared, "It wasn't right not telling you about the bikes."

Dad nodded, but I could tell that he expected more of an explanation, so I confessed, "We knew that neither you nor Charlie would have approved for Bella to learn how to ride a motorbike. She wanted to learn it so badly. It made her feel better. I couldn't say no to her…" I looked him deep in his eyes and added determinedly, "The bike means so much to Bella. Charlie just can't take it away from her. I'll talk to him- apologize. He can't away her bike." I jumped up to my feet and reached for the phone.

"Jacob, stop! I wasn't done yet," Dad called out, and rolled his eyes at me. "Charlie won't take away her bike permanently." I let out a sigh of relief. "Nevertheless, you are forbidden to use your bikes for four weeks - both of you. Also, Charlie insists on training you two on how to handle the bikes. He asked me to pass along the message that he was sick of scratching other people's brains from the asphalt, and when the training starts, you're gonna have to wear a helmet and jacket."

Me in a helmet and a leather jacket? _Yeah, right. I'm gonna sweat myself to death. _I snorted. Crossing my arms over my chest, I leaned against the doorframe and fiddled with the telephone cord.

We stared at each other, and I was anxious to know what dad was thinking. His face held a stoic expression, not giving anything away. When he finally broke the silence, I was surprised by the amused spark in his eyes. "Jacob, there's is something else I wanted to talk to you about,"

_What was he up__ to now? _

With effort, dad hoisted himself up and held on to the kitchen table for support. I jerked forward, and reached to give him the water bottle he was aiming for. He glared at me, saying without words to keep my hands to myself. Dad hated when I took over and did things for him he wanted to do by himself. I drew back, palms up in a placating gesture.

"Charlie seemed very upset about something concerning his kitchen table," dad informed me casually, before taking a sip of his water. "He said, and now I'm quoting, 'Tell your son to watch out'." He raised his eyebrows and looked at me questioningly. "What have you done?"

I felt the heat in my cheeks rise, and I coughed in attempt to hide my embarrassment from my dad. Of course, I couldn't hide anything from my dad. He always saw right through me. "Charlie saw me kissing Bella," I finally admitted when he wouldn't stop gazing at me, and I bit the inside of my cheek.

"Okay," Dad said, probingly. "Kissing. And what about the kitchen table? Did you smash it or something?"

I couldn't help the grin that spread over my face. "We got a little… carried away, and were making out on top of it until Charlie caught us."

Dad rubbed his chin, something he did when he was stressed, and slowly dragged his feet over to where I was standing. "So, Charlie caught you two on the bike, and later he then finds you going at each other?"

I nodded, and despite my crimson colored face, I couldn't stop smiling. Even though the situation right now was kind of awkward, I wasn't embarrassed. In fact, I was darn proud that Bella and I had gone so far without her breaking down in tears again. I had seen the spark in her eyes when she had offered me the peach, how her heart pounded away when I stepped between her legs and kissed her – the positive pounding away, if you know what I mean.

"Earth to Jacob," I heard my dad's voice call, and I realized that I had zoned out completely. He stood in front of me, staring me in the face. When standing on his two feet, he was eye level with me. "You can take off that smug grin, Jacob. Charlie is really mad at you right now, and I'm not happy either. When did things get so serious between you two, anyway? Last time I saw you around Bella, you wouldn't touch her by any means. When did things change?"

My face fell, and I drawled out in a peeved tone, "Do you really want to know?"

"Yes. I do," Dad shouted at me. "You didn't really consider what I told you before, did you?"

Agitated, I shook my head and my body started to tremble. "I love Bella. I won't let anything come between us. And I definitely don't need to hear that I should stay away from her. I can make her happy, and as long as she wants me to be with her, I will."

Dad lifted his hand, poking me in the chest with his finger. It quickly made me feel threatened, and I fought back a warning growl.

"If you mess things up with Bella, I swear, Charlie is going to flay you alive," Dad said. "You pulled quite a number today. You know he cares for you as a son. He could barely keep it together tonight. He wanted to forbid you to be around Bella. It was a close call, Jacob."

Despite of his anger, I also heard a sad undertone in his voice and understood his concern. Even though he didn't imply that I would hurt Bella intentionally, I was still irritated. "He can't keep me away from her," I seethed. I wanted to forget about the whole wolf thing for a while and be a normal teenager. "Why can't we enjoy ourselves like everyone else does?" I muttered, frustrated.

He responded sternly, "YOU are not like everyone else, son. Face that fact."

This time, an angry growl was up my throat and out of my mouth before I could stop it. "I won't have this discussion with you again."

Dad turned around and collapsed into his chair. "And I don't intend to repeat myself over and over again, either. You made your point clear, and I made my point clear. You don't listen to anything I have to say, anyway!"

"Because you don't trust me, Dad," I fumed. "I didn't choose what I was born with, but I won't let it ruin my life. I'll be there for Bella. I'll be what she needs me to be. I won't let her down." The blood was pumping in my veins, and I was more than ready to fight. I didn't realize that I was shaking, until dad shot me a glare that instantly locked my muscles in place.

The expression on my dad's face was full of sadness. He pushed himself out of the kitchen, and before he reached his room, he looked back at me. "I know how much you hate my warning, son. You can't be careful enough. Charlie doesn't take things lightly anymore after what this leech did to his daughter. He's anxious about Bella, fearing that she will break entirely if you break her heart, too..." He then closed the door and left me standing in the hall.

I stared at the door for another minute, working on keeping my trembling under control, before I finally called Bella's. I was desperate to hear her voice. It was the only sound that could calm me down. I was stressed out about what happened between us, and wanted to make sure Charlie hadn't been too hard on her.

I wasn't surprised when Charlie picked up the phone. I also wasn't surprised when I heard him bark angrily into the phone, "Swan Residence."

"It's Jacob," I said, more flustered than I wanted to show. _Would he slam the receiver down or let me speak to Bella? _

"Bella, phone!" Charlie shouted through the house, straining my eardrum. I shook my head to dispel the annoying ring and blurted out, "Don't take her bike, Charlie. It's my fault. I'm sorry."

"Jacob," he growled angrily.

"I want to apologize," I repeated, being careful with my words. "I'm fully aware that you're disappointed in me and I take full responsibility for my actions."

Charlie snorted. "I'm giving you this one chance, Jacob Black. You better not screw up. Should I catch you or Bella on the bikes within the next four weeks, they'll be gone for good. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, Chief. No bikes." I agreed, recognizing that I called him by his rank, not by his name.

My promise left him unfazed, determined to not yield an inch. "Let me tell you one more thing, Jacob. I never want see my girl the way she was when this Cullen boy dropped her…"

My first instinct was to snap and tell him that he could by no means compare me to a friggin' leech, but that wouldn't turn out well. That's why I narrowed down on answering irritably, "I would never ever do this to her." I twisted the phone cord around my fingers, suppressing the anger that was again building inside my chest, hoping that we would finally be done. I just wanted to talk to Bella.

Charlie dropped his voice to a whisper in attempt to threaten me. "I'll be watching you, Jacob. Be warned. Even if you're Billy's son, I'm not trusting you right now…"

"Jake?" Bella interrupted her father's tirade just in time, and the trembling in my hands disappeared.

"Hi, Bells. How are things going?" I asked her. For a few moments I heard nothing, only some rustling, some footsteps, then finally I heard a door shut.

"I'm fine," she finally answered.

"Are you alone now? Can you talk?" I asked, while fiddling with the cord of my phone.

"Yeah, I'm in my room." Seconds of silence followed her words. The sound of her breathing through the phone relaxed me.

"Jake, I'm sorry. Charlie shouldn't have yelled at you like that," she finally whispered. When I didn't answer her, she continued, "Jake, are you still there?"

I cleared my throat, trying to concentrate on her words, not on her raspy voice. "Yeah… sorry, I was distracted. Everything is okay with your Dad, don't worry."

Bella kept on whispering, and I heard the excitement in her voice. "Guess what? He wants to teach us with the bikes…"

I groaned in mock irritation, "Yeah, Billy told me already. And no bike for four weeks, which sucks, but it could be worse. Don't you think?"

"It's fine, Jake. Four weeks. We can manage four weeks. Did you know that he ordered me to buy protective clothing?" she giggled. "Can you image me wearing leather pants and stuff?"

My heart nearly jumped out of my chest, and I closed my eyes as I pictured Bella straddling her bike clad in tight leather pants, boots, and a red leather jacket that hugged her body in just the right places. I was immediately rock hard and groaned, gripping the doorframe for purchase.

"You okay, Jake?" she asked innocently.

"I'm alright. I just stubbed my toe," I lied, saying the first thing that came into my mind. I couldn't tell her what the image of her in leather pants did to me. "You will look great, Bells," I managed to say. "And you're not the only one that has to wear protective clothing. Charlie ordered that I have to get myself a helmet and a leather jacket, too."

My eyes popped open when Bella let out an approving whistle and praised, "You will look bad-ass."

"You think so? I'll be sweating like a horse," I snorted. Her breathing hitched, and she drew in a sharp gasp, followed by a hissed cuss word. "What did you do?"

She giggled nervously. "It's fine. I'm fine. I just got a paper cut," Bella mumbled. I heard a sucking sound, followed by a popping sound, wondering if she had put her finger in her mouth.

I got even harder and was unable to breathe. I couldn't let Bella know what she did to me, so I quickly rushed out my next question. "Bells?" I croaked out, my throat suddenly really dry. "Did Charlie say anything about… us… erm… kissing? I mean, I… ah." It was hard to think when your blood was stagnating in the nether regions of your body, instead of feeding your brain with oxygen.

Bella inhaled shuddered breaths. When she answered, her voice squeaked. "It was kind of awkward. He gave me a speech about being responsible and careful."

"Oh, God," I groaned, and blurted out, "And we aren't that far yet or are we?"

Suddenly the tension was heavy as Bella fell completely silent.

"You don't need to answer," I stuttered, as it was all I could say. Me and my big mouth. _Would I ever be able to think before I talked?_

"Bella, dinner's burning," I heard Charlie yell.

"You should go, Bells. We've upset Charlie enough for one day," I laughed reluctantly, as I wanted to ease the mood. Even though I couldn't see Bella, I knew that she would be biting her lip, thinking of how to tell me she wasn't ready. I tried to ignore the unpleasant feeling that turned my stomach into a cold, hard stone.

"Jake," she whispered. "You're right. We aren't that far. But…"

I leaned my head against the doorframe, the phone tightly clutched to my ear. "Bells, you don't need to… I shouldn't have…" I felt like a big idiot, angry with myself for misinterpreting the kiss from earlier. The kiss probably had been nothing more but the spur of the moment, raging teenage hormones or something.

She interrupted me, and for the second time today, she really surprised me by saying, "You make me feel better, Jake. I don't want to be miserable anymore. The kiss today… It was amazing."

Before I could answer her, Charlie called for a second time, much more urgent this time. "Got to go, Jake. See you tomorrow. I'm coming over after school," she rushed out, but after what she had just revealed, I didn't want to let her go.

"Bells?"

"Jake, Charlie can't even take a pan off the stove. He's burning the house to cinders. See you tomorrow. Promise." With that, she hung up on me.

I sighed and checked our clock, remembering that I was on duty tonight. Knocking on dad's door, I asked him, "Do you need anything, Dad? I'm on patrol tonight and need to leave in an hour."

Dad opened the door and looked at me warily. "So, did Charlie let you live?"

"Yep," I answered, and grinned, feeling a little bit light-hearted over Bella's confession that our kiss had been amazing for her. "What can I do for you before I leave?" I stepped into his room, which had been my parent's room before my mom died, and checked if the room needed some cleaning. Dad usually did it by himself, but with some things he needed my help. I saw that he had started to strip off his bed and I quickly finished the rest.

"I need to shower, Jacob," Dad said, before he pushed his wheelchair across the hall and opened the bathroom door. We worked together in silence; we had our routine. I knew where he needed help and there were no words necessary. After my transformation I had become stronger, which made handling him easier for me, but it was harder for him to accept how weak he had become over the last few months. It was like a downward spiral. We both knew it was just a matter of time until he was wheelchair-bound permanently, but we refused to talk about it.

While he was taking a shower, I put new sheets on his bed, and brought him fresh clothes, which I laid out for him on his bed. Only when I had the laundry in the washing machine, and dad was safely tucked in, I was good to go.


	7. It's not you It's me

**A/N: Thanks to my amazing betas from Project Team Beta, esp. Kayla Cullen. Hey, she's editing my stuff even though she's a die-hard**** vamplover. LOL. Respect, Lady! **

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

* * *

**_Chapter 7 – It's not you. It's me._**

**_~~Bella~~_**

I was in the middle of dinner preparations when the phone rang, and Charlie called out for me. I put the roast back into the oven and turned down the heat on the vegetables before I got my phone call. When I came into the living room Charlie was sputtering and hissing threats into the phone. I practically ripped the phone from Charlie, earning a warning glare from him, but I couldn't care less. Right now, I only wanted Jake safe from Charlie's fit.

I ran upstairs, searching the privacy of my room, and told Jacob about Charlie's order with the bikes. When I talked about wearing protective clothing in the future, Jake suddenly became different. His voice dropped and became husky. He seemed distracted, and I was sure I heard him groaning. It was a groan that passed through my body like a lightning, making me tingle.

As Jake in return declared that Charlie demanded that he was to wear protective clothing as well, I – still feeling the tingling in my lower stomach - spontaneously whistled and said appraisingly, "You will look bad-ass."

"You think so? I'll be sweating like a horse," he answered sarcastically.

The image of a sweating Jacob popped up in my head and made me wonder how it would feel to be pressed against his sweat-covered chest. I responded to this image with a sharp gasp.

"What did you do?" he asked concerned, probably thinking that I had hurt myself.

I flushed with shame as I pressed my thighs together when suddenly the tingling in my stomach concentrated between my legs._ Holy Hell!_ What would he think of me when I told him that I was fantasizing over him? Nearly sure that he wouldn't mind, I giggled nervously, but I wasn't ready for that kind of revelation yet. Feeling too embarrassed to be frank, I lied. "It's fine. I'm fine. I just got a paper cut." I even had the brains to put my finger in my mouth, pretending to suck the pain away and hoping that he would buy it, since he knew that usually I got sick over the smell of my own blood.

With a popping sound, I released my finger from my lips and as I stared at it, I thought of how it would be to have his finger between my lips. Suddenly it was hard to breathe and the tension between us felt like electricity, sizzling and buzzing, letting the hairs on my neck stand on end. _Was Jacob feeling it, too?_

Finally, Jake broke the silence and asked, croaking, "Bells, did Charlie say anything about… us… erm… kissing? I mean, I… ah."

If I hadn't been embarrassed myself I probably would have found his awkwardness adorable. "It was kind of awkward. He gave me a speech about being responsible and careful," I rushed out.

"Oh God," Jacob groaned, and he declared, "and we aren't that far already or are we?"

My heart started to race at his words. I knew that the words meant more for him than they sounded, and I didn't know what to say. The silence between us, which had been easy only minutes ago, suddenly was uncomfortable.

"You don't need to answer," he then added, obviously misinterpreting my silence as my way to turn him down. Only, it wasn't like that. I didn't turn him down. I just hadn't made my final decision yet, wasn't done thinking. I bit down on my lip. How much longer did I want to drag this decision out?

I couldn't deny the attraction towards him anymore, especially not after the kiss from today, but was I ready to take the next step already? With all the nightmares I still had of Edward, with all the memories that came up so uninvited and that could crash me down anytime, was it okay opening up to Jacob?

"Bella, dinner's burning," I heard Charlie yell, and I stifled a frustrated sigh. Even though I found it more important to tell Jacob what I was thinking, it would be better if I went downstairs. After everything we had put my father through today, it would be wiser to not let him wait because I was on the phone with Jake.

"You should go, Bells. We upset Charlie enough for one day," Jake said, laughing reluctantly.

I was aware that he was suddenly very tense. I wanted to let him know what I was feeling, but I was too afraid to admit it openly. My stomach clenched with nerves, and my heart beat almost painfully fast against my chest. Nonetheless, I had to say something. I couldn't let him go like that. "You're right. We aren't that far. But…"

"Bells, you don't need to… I shouldn't have…" Jake interrupted me, apologizing, and that felt plain wrong to me. He had nothing to apologize for.

With a deep sigh, I worked up the courage and rushed out, "You make me feel better, Jake. I don't want to be miserable anymore. The kiss today… It was amazing."

Jake drew in a breath, and Charlie called again, more urgent this time. It started to get me on my nerves. "I need to go, Jake. See you tomorrow. I'm coming over after school," I said, slightly irritated, hating that Charlie was disturbing our moment.

"Bells?"

I could smell something burning and hurried out of my room. "Jake, Charlie can't even take a pan off the stove. He's burning the house to cinders. See you tomorrow. Promise." With that, I hung up on him, hoping that he would understand.

With annoyance, I pulled the pot from the stove and the pan out of the oven, saving dinner from being completely ruined. I ignored Charlie's satisfied grin when I set the table, and also ignored his puzzled stare when I emptied my plate in no time. I even had a second helping tonight. I was hungrier than I have ever been before. When I was finally finished, I patted my full stomach and enjoyed the warm, fuzzy feeling inside of me.

* * *

After spending the rest of the day studying for my final tests tomorrow, I finally put the folders and school books aside. My body was exhausted, but my mind seemed restless. I sneaked out of my room and tiptoed downstairs. Then I did what I hadn't done in ages; I helped myself to a huge serving of my favorite chocolate ice cream and sat down right on the counter, enjoying the chocolaty goodness with a content hum on my lips.

After I had my fill, I went back into my room. I skipped brushing my teeth and plopped down on my bed. Still restless, I stared at the ceiling, wondering what Jake would be doing right now, and relived the kiss and the feel of his warm soft lips on mine until I finally fell asleep.

This night I dreamt of Jake, and the dream picked up where we had been interrupted by Charlie.

_I sat on the kitchen table with my shirt open and Jake's hands on my hips. I moaned and writhed when he slid his hands over my belly and up to my chest. Finally, he covered my breasts with his large, warm hands. Jacob kissed me on my lips and then he nibbled his way down my neck to my collarbone. Soon, I found myself needing to be touched down there, where I was burning. _

_Then the location changed. We weren't in my kitchen anymore, but somewhere outside. I was sitting on his bike while he kissed me passionately and ran his hands over my behind and my thighs. I wrapped my arms around him and slipped my hands under the fabric of the black leather jacket he wore. He was without a shirt underneath the jacket, which shouldn't have surprised me, but it did. He looked deliriously sinful, and the smug smile that played on the corners of his lips made me weak in the knees. _

_I slid my hands over his back and rubbed them over his chest, until they found their way into his hair. Pulling him down to me, I was able to reach his lips and I kissed him with fervor. Jacob grabbed my hips and pushed against me, the fabric of his jeans rubbing in a tantalizing way against my core. _

_Soon our kisses became more heated and the rubbing against each other more frantic. The pleasant but achy feeling between my legs was quickly unbearable. Grinding against Jacob's thigh, I searched for friction and it felt so good. Then the sensation increased, and a slow burning spread through my body. I gasped for air and begged Jacob to do something about the burning, or I would burst into flames. _

_The pleasure I felt intensified. Like electricity, a tingling flowed through my body which made the muscles deep down in my belly tighten and contract. I clung to Jacob, bucking against his thigh, yearning for the amazing sensation that concentrated between my legs and in my lower stomach. _

_Jacob rubbed against me while touching my breasts. When he bent down, licking droplets of salty sweat from the tender skin of my throat, suddenly all the pent-up energy exploded, and I cried out his name as waves over waves of pleasure rolled over me._

Slowly, the blissful feeling ebbed away. I panted and my heart raced. Returning to reality, I found myself in a rather uncomfortable position with my hand trapped between my thighs. My whole body pulsed and I was spent, positive exhaustion making my limbs heavy. I removed my hand and rolled onto my back.

Giddy with excitement, I grinned and pulled my pillow over my head. I had dreamt the sexiest dream I've ever had, and I had experienced my first orgasm. _Oh God, I had my first orgasm dreaming of Jake._

Slowly, the afterglow vanished, and I stared into the darkness, thinking and contemplating.

Before I fell in love with Edward, I hadn't discovered my sexuality yet. When I was with him I had been too afraid to explore my body or give in to my needs. Even though I was curious to find out, I was horrified that he could possibly find out (and he was watching me sleep at nights anyway). Well, and after Edward had left it somehow felt inappropriate to even think lustful thoughts.

I sighed, heart heavy with memories.

With Edward it had been nice and sweet. Kissing him had been exciting, but never as sensual as it was with Jacob. I had been so much in love with Edward. Why the heck did I never react _that_ strongly to his kisses? I recalled the way Edward had kissed me, remembering the dizziness, the butterflies, and the small ripples of pleasure I'd always felt when I'd been in his arms.

It didn't even come close to the way Jacob made me feel when he kissed me.

Tears started to trickle down my face as I tried to comprehend. I had trusted Edward with my heart, knowing that he would never give in the temptation and drink my blood. He'd always been careful with me, restrained and cautious. Too cautious for my liking, but I understood and respected it. He'd never given me a reason to be scared. Though, compared to my reactions to Jacob, my body had been reluctant and maybe even subconsciously aware of the risk.

Maybe that was why it was easy with Jacob, because I knew that he didn't lust for my blood. I snickered at the thought. Sure, Jacob didn't lust for my blood, but he wasn't hiding the fact that he wanted our relationship to step up another notch, intimacy included. In fact, I seemed to lust for him likewise. Since he had become a werewolf it became harder and harder to resist him. Maybe it was just all that teenage, hormonal reaction.

Suddenly, the old familiar feeling was back - the pain of Edward's leaving and the feeling that I was betraying Edward with his mortal enemy. This time, though, I also felt anger. I was upset that I still couldn't make up my mind. It bothered me that I was trapped between the need to hold on to my first love and the wish to move on with Jacob.

Even though I knew that Edward was gone and Jacob was here, waiting in the wings, my heart was still undecided.

Furiously, I tossed and turned around for a long time, not able to fall back asleep.

* * *

Twelve hours later, I stood before the Black's house, rapping at their door, but nobody answered. Maybe Jake was still sleeping and was too far gone to hear me? After a few moments of waiting, I decided to let myself in. I knew that the door would be open, since no one ever locked their doors here on the reservation.

"Jake?" I called out, but the house felt empty, and I got no answer.

Frowning, I left the house and climbed back into my truck, not knowing what to do. Why wasn't Jake at home? He knew that I was coming over to meet him. Where was he when he knew that I was coming? Anxiously, I drummed my fingers on the steering wheel.

I jumped when a scratchy voice addressed me, "You waiting for Jake?" Looking up, I saw a lanky boy standing before my truck. I stared into his face, recognizing familiarities to a boy who I had met a couple of times before, and who used to hang out with pre-transformation Jacob.

"Is that you, Seth?" I asked, surprised. He had grown a lot since the last time I saw him and had lost a lot of his childishness.

Seth nodded proudly as he recognized my observing glare and said, "They're at Second Beach." He ran around the car and yanked the passenger door open. "If you don't mind, I'm coming with you. I can show you the way."

"Okay," I answered, and started my truck. We rode to Second Beach making small talk. The road was familiar, as I had visited the beaches around La Push several times with my dad when I was younger. We passed the turn-off to First Beach, and then the landscape became rougher and rather pristine.

Seth cracked jokes that made me shake with laughter and freely talked about school, his friends, and how glad he was that it finally had summer holidays, even when he would spend it on the reservation this year. A few minutes later, Seth told me to stop.I veered off the road, parked the truck off the concrete, and climbed out of the truck. I fastened my shoes, knowing a hike was awaiting me and snatched my sweater when a cool breeze made me shiver a little. Then, I was ready to go.

Seth led me over a path that snaked its way through the lush, emerald forest. When we left the confines of the forest behind us, I was rewarded with a dramatic view over the broad, open beach, interesting looking rock formations, the well-known driftwood, and tide pools glistening in the sun. In the distance, I could catch a glimpse of James Island which was almost completely hidden under mist and deep-hanging clouds.

Ear deafening music roared over the beach. Seth's eyes sparkled with excitement and he flashed me a broad smile. "Come on, they're having fun." I followed Seth down to the beach, walking along a path that led through the hedge of weeds.

Some skinny kids were goofing around right in front of us. We circled around their mountain bikes as they tried to keep standing on only one wheel, alternating between the front and back wheel.

Walking closer to the water, I squinted against the sun and tried to make out the source of the blaring music. Finally, I discovered Jake, Embry, and Quil doing some kind of dance. Also, I heard them chant with the song, their deep, musical voices taking me by surprise.

Then, the song changed into an instrumental piece. It inspired them to play on air guitars. A moment later, with their fists pumped in the air, they started jumping up and down to the rhythm of the music. I had seen the boys in school doing that guitar hero stuff, but Jake and his friends outdid them as they moved in perfect synchronization.

When Seth suddenly joined their group and jumped right into the middle with an enthusiastic cry, I became aware that I was staring shamelessly and open-mouthed. My face flushed.

As the song changed one more time, and this time into a stirring beat, Jacob fell to his knees, bending backwards in an impossible angle, and played his imaginary guitar in a way that would put Jimi Hendrix to shame.

My eyes ran over his body, totally forgetting everything around me. The difference between his broad chest and his small waist mesmerized me. The thick muscles moving beneath his russet skin made me gape in awe.

Jacob then jumped back to his feet and rocked his head back and forth like those heavy metal stars do. Instantly, I missed his long hair.

"Like what you see?" a soft voice asked, and I jerked around, finding Emily Young standing behind me. She had Sam by her side and looked at me with an amused smile. Sam's expression was stoic as usual, giving away no emotion.

I blushed even more and nodded shyly, returning Emily's smile and avoiding Sam's glare. He studied me for a minute, which made me squirm uncomfortably. Then, he turned around, facing the guys. They immediately turned around when he whistled, announcing his arrival. For a moment, I thought they looked somewhat guilty, especially as Quil hurried to switch off the blearing music.

When Jacob saw me he grinned broadly. He ran towards me, ignoring Sam's disagreeing grunt. "Hi, Bells," he called out, and took me in one of his huge hugs.

"Jake," I choked out, being pressed into his chest. He smelled so good, like sunshine, ocean, and the forest - all musky and warm. Instinctively, I sank into his embrace, searching his warmth, and then suddenly memories of my_… ahem… _dream were back. Feeling caught, I stiffened while I felt the blood rush into my head, and I pulled back.

"So, how were your tests today?" Jacob asked. He looked me in the eyes, and if he had been aware how abruptly I had drawn back, he didn't let it show. He just smiled, his dark eyes shining.

I was so very aware of him, almost overly aware. When I inhaled, drawing in his warm, spicy scent, I couldn't keep my eyes from his broad shoulders and his magnificent chest. Even though I pulled back before, I now realized that I still held onto his arm. "Fine, I guess. My tests went fine," I croaked nervously, letting go of his arm. _Get a grip, Bella. It was just a dream, and it isn't like he can read your mind._ My blush must be permanently etched on my face by now, and I wanted to hide myself. _Way to act weird, Bella._

"Are you okay, Bells?" he asked amused, recognizing my confusion, and then he reached out to touch my face.

I nodded and bit my lip. "Uh-huh."

Jacob cupped my cheek, and then slid his hand over my neck to my shoulder while peering into my eyes. His hand lingered on my neck for a moment as he stepped forward, closing the distance I had put between us. Letting his fingers trail along my arm, he finally wrapped his fingers around the wrist of my left hand. He lifted my hand and pecked a small kiss on my knuckles, before he kissed me on my lips. "You seem a little… odd."

_If only you knew what I dreamt last night, _I thought to myself, staring up to him through my lashes. He watched me observantly, and since there was no way that I was going to tell him my little secret, I just smiled at him and kept my mouth shut.

There was one thing that I wanted to do so much that my fingers practically twitched. I wanted to try one thing. "Jake," I muttered, laying my hand on his shoulder.

I tilted my head back and stared him fully in the face, fascinated by his full lips. I let my hand wander from his shoulder to his neck. My fingers drew a line to his ear, down to his throat, where I felt his pulse thrumming under my fingertips.

"Bella, what are you doing?" he whispered hoarsely, letting out a gush of air.

I didn't know what had made me this forward, but I just went on, encouraged by his reaction to my touch. My heart started to speed up as my fingers slid farther down to his chest, feeling the smooth skin there and the hard muscles.

Jacob sucked in a sharp breath and tightened his grip around my other wrist.

I stopped my exploration when I reached his stomach, and I placed my hand there with the feel of his well-defined abs under my hand.

Jake let go of my wrist and wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me into him. His heat surrounded me instantly, but then a loud smack made Jake wince, growl, and break away from me.

He spun around, facing a smug looking Seth.

"Get a room you two," Seth cackled, pretending to gag. "There are minors around, you know."

"Eat my shorts!" Jake answered. He roughly pushed against Seth, which made the boy throw a punch in return. The next second, they were engaged in a tussle. It didn't last long and Seth was thrown flat on his belly. Without success, he struggled against Jake, who had his knee pressed onto Seth's back.

"You better grow up before you try challenging me, kiddo," Jake said, giving Seth the opportunity to rise. Before Seth could escape, he took him in a head lock and gave him a noogie.

"Oww," Seth protested, laughing, and kicked Jake in the shin. Jake let go of him, and Seth backed away quickly, but not without giving Jake the one-finger salute.

Jake guffawed loudly. "Go fly a kite, Sethie-boy."

"What was that for?" I asked, dumbfounded. Everything happened so fast. One second we were almost kissing, the next Jake had tackled Seth to the ground. I would never get used to supernatural speed.

Jacob, still laughing, answered, "Oh, nothing. He just needs to be put in his place sometimes."

"You're rude," I complained. "Seth brought me here. He's been nothing but nice." Confused, I stared at Jake and gazed after Seth, who now was laughing with those boys that goofed around on their bikes.

Jake just flashed a smile and drew me into a hug. "It's a guy thing, Bells."

"A guy thing?" I retorted, looking up to him and cocking my eye brow. _Or a wolf thing, _I thought. "Jacob, can I ask you something?"

"Shoot, what do you want to know?" He took my hand, and we started walking along the beach.

I studied the sand under my feet before I looked back to where Seth was. Sam was talking to him, and he kind of looked on edge. Chewing at my lip, I turned around to face Jacob. "I was wondering… Is Seth a wolf, too?"

Jacob froze in place, obviously feeling uncomfortable. "I… eh," he mumbled, glancing over at Sam, who suddenly seemed to watch us with growing interest.

"Jake?"

Jake was tense, and his demeanor reminded me of the night when he came through my window the day he had almost broken up with me. Back then, he had told me that he wasn't allowed to tell me what was going on. Was he in the same situation right now?

"Bells, I—" Jacob couldn't bring the words over his lips.

I saw how much he struggled to frame an answer. Seconds later, he gave up, huffing, and pushed his clenched hands into his pants pockets. "Alpha command. I'm sorry, Bells."

I turned around again, and Sam was still watching us. It gave me the creeps. A chill ran down my spine under his hard stare, and I pulled up my shoulders, instinctively trying to hide.

"You're not allowed to tell me?" I whispered, and grabbed Jake's arm, pulling him with me - away from Sam and his friends.

"Yes," Jacob pressed through his teeth, angrily kicking the sand. "Sam gave me a very tight Alpha order this time. I'm not allowed to discuss anything concerning pack matters with you. He doesn't trust you." He was getting more infuriated with each word he spoke.

"But why?" I felt tears well up in my eyes and quickly forced them away. I didn't want Jacob to get more upset than he already was.

"You used to hang out with leeches, Bella," Jacob said, and for a moment his voice was hard and his eyes glared coldly upon the ocean.

I frowned at the appearance of the new Jake, the one that could be so adamant, and even frightening. I very much preferred my Jacob smiling. Out of habit, I wanted to tell him that I was sorry, but then I squared my shoulders. "It's long ago," I said with as much vehemence I could muster. "They are gone, and I'm with you now," I added – _When had I made that decision? _- sounding a little braver than I felt. For a moment, I was even tempted to turn around and stick my tongue out at Sam.

"You're with me now?" Jacob repeated my sentence, turning it into a question. I saw hope flaring up in his eyes.

"I, uh," I squeaked, blushing for the umpteenth time today. "I guess so…"

Jake's face lit up, but surprisingly didn't ask again, and he also didn't say anything else regarding my unexpected declaration. Instead, he suddenly hollered across the beach, "Collin, Brady. Your bikes. Now."

"Jake? What the…" I didn't come to complete my question.

Greedily, the two kids nodded and raced their bicycles over the sand effortlessly. They came to a sharp stop in front of us. Jacob remained standing, totally unfazed, trusting that they would stop just in time. I jumped back, hiding half behind Jacob's back which made him laugh out loud. "Chicken!"

He pointed towards a pile of clothes and back packs, and said, "Give me your helmet, Brady."

Again, the boy complied without hesitation. He dropped his bike, sprinted to the spot where all their stuff was lying, and came back with a blue helmet, handing it to Jacob.

"We're not allowed to ride our _motorbikes_, but your dad didn't talk about _bicycles_…" Jacob explained, smirking at me wickedly. He pulled the helmet down on top of my head, fastened the latch and checked if the helmet was safely fixed.

"Jake, I can't… I didn't ride a bicycle in years," I tried to object, but Jacob cut me off.

"I'm not taking no for an answer," he said. "There's really no big difference to riding a motorbike." He grinned; showing his brilliant teeth, which, by the way, made me all gooey inside, and picked up Brady's bicycle. "Get up!" he ordered, pushing the bike towards me.

With shaking hands, I mounted the bike, my feet barely touching the ground. "That's way too high, Jake," I complained, hoping that he would see reason and drop the idea of riding the bicycles.

Jacob let me stand up and adjusted the seat to my height. "There you go," he said, slapping the seat. Then, he snatched the other bicycle from the boy named Collin and nodded his head. "This way, Bells." He mounted his bike and started pedaling.

To my astonishment, I had the hang of it after a few seconds, and even managed to maneuver the bicycle through the sand without falling off. Behind me, the guys whistled and Quil called after Jake to bring me back in one piece, or else Chief Swan would have his ass.

I smiled to myself, following Jake, and even though I still felt insecure, I started to like it. The cool ocean breeze flowed around me, caressing my skin as we rode along the cliff road toward the forest. From there, Jake led us over a small path into the woods.

He stayed close to me while we talked about my final exams. Later on, Jake told me about the discussion he had with his father yesterday. He didn't seem too happy about something, but when I asked what was bothering him, he brushed it off with a shrug and said it was nothing of big relevance.

After a while, the path changed from flat to stony, and I had a hard time leading the bicycle around the stones without crashing the front wheel against one. Then, the path became bumpy and certain parts of my anatomy crashed down hard onto the saddle, making me yelp in pain.

Jake looked over his shoulder and said, "Bells, you better want to ride standing..."

"Ride standing?" I replied hysterically. "How am I going to ride standing?" The path became steeper, making my teeth rattle and my poor girly parts hurt like heck.

"Just do it. Dammit, Bells. Will you just stand up for Christ's sake? You're going to have bruises between your legs if you don't lift your ass like right NOW!"

"I don't know how, Jacob. I'm going to fall off my bike if I stand up," I whined while I simultaneously tried to keep the wobbling bike under control.

Jake hit the brakes and let me catch up with him. "I'll show you," he said. "Look, it's easy. Stand up… Just like this." Before I could blink an eye, he was standing, easily directing the bike around the stones.

Of course, for him it would be easy. Everything was easy for him. He was just so natural with his body, knowing how to move without losing his balance, without tripping and falling. I pouted, shook my head, and he started to laugh.

"Okay, you won't try? Then I won't stand, either." He sat down on his seat, his knees almost reaching his ears. It looked ridiculous, and he grinned roguishly, knowing that it looked ridiculous. He didn't mind. Instead, he made a stern face, pretending to be highly concentrated.

It made me giggle, especially when he began moving his bike willfully through holes and over stones, commenting his actions with, "Ow. Ow. Ow."

"You're such a goof bag, Jacob," I cried out, almost doubling over with laughter.

I finally plucked up courage and just stood up. Shifting my weight a little bit more onto my hands, I managed to keep standing without losing my balance. He was right, though. It was more bearable having my behind in the air, but I didn't really feel safe or anywhere close to comfortable. But one thing it was - fun.

A few minutes later we reached the edge of the forest. A meadow lay before us, the rich, green grass swaying in the summer breeze, beautiful flowers growing everywhere. I swallowed hard as memories from another meadow crashed down on me. _Oh God_.

My legs started trembling and my arms, stiff from holding on tight to the handlebars, just gave out under me. I dropped the bike and fell on my knees, panting and sweating. "I can't do this anymore," I whispered hoarsely, trying to keep up my composure. I didn't want those bad memories any longer. They weren't good for me. They stopped me from moving on.

"You can, Bells. Just keep going," Jacob said, trying to encourage me, and sat down next to me. He seemed clueless, obviously thinking I talked about riding the bikes, but he watched me concerned. It would be only a matter of seconds until he discovered what was truly going on with me.

By all means, I needed to avoid that he recognized my misery. It wasn't about him. It was just my wrecked up brain that liked shoving memories throughout my head when I needed them at least. I plopped onto my back and muttered, "I'm done; I'm spent. I'm not going to go on any further."

To my surprise, I managed to push away all the pain and any thoughts about Edward. I looked into the sky, and then I looked at Jake.

He grinned mischievously and sat down next to me, Indian style. "And how do you think you're going to get home, Bells?" he asked, and cocked his head to the side.

I stared at his arms, ogling his biceps. "Carry me," I demanded, tempted by the idea of being carried by him through the woods.

"Oh, no. That's not how it's going to work. I won't carry you home," he answered, smirking at me.

"Why, Jake?" I whined. "Why can't you carry me? I practically weigh nothing. You won't even feel me…"

He shook his head determinedly. "You will ride your bike home and afterwards you will feel great, because you made it on your own. Trust me, Bells."

I knew that he wouldn't give in; as he was the most determined person I had ever met. "Feels great," I muttered exasperated, and rolled my eyes at him. Not that I was pouting.

"Your pouting doesn't work with me. No need to try…" he whispered into my ear.

I hadn't seen him coming closer, so I jumped and playfully punched his chest, but punching him was like punching a brick wall. A very warm, smooth skinned brick wall. A wail escaped my lips.

"Are you hurt, Bells?" Jake asked concerned, but I waved at him dismissively.

"I'm fine." I clenched and unclenched my hand, while the pain slowly subsided. I needed to remember to never do that again. "Pouting doesn't work?" I heard myself say in a playful tone.

"Nope," Jake answered, crossing his arms smugly.

"If I asked you really nicely, then?" I asked in a honey-sweet voice, and mimicking him, I crossed my arms over my chest, too.

Jacob smirked. "It kind of depends on how nicely you ask, I guess…" He put some space between us and sat on his heels, still having this smug look on his face until he suddenly went very quiet. He shifted his position and bent forward, inching closer, while his eyes were fixed on my arms.

Confused, I tried to decipher his body language. Was he mad at me? Why would he suddenly be so untypically silent and stare at me intently?

Eventually, I noticed that he was staring at my boobs which I had unintentionally pushed up when crossing my arms. I gasped and dropped my arms. Hiding my face behind my hair, I quickly got up and picked up the bike.

I wasn't ready yet, and I was scared to no end – mostly of my own powerful reaction. When he stared at me like that, it brought back my last night's dream full force.

"Let's go," I mumbled. "You convinced me. I'm riding that bike home…"

"Bells, wait up," he called out, sounding confused.

I ignored him and got my bike, leading it back to the path we had come before. I didn't come far until he blocked my way.

"What's up, Bella?" he asked with an inch of anger lingering in his voice.

I gave up, exasperated and refused to look up at him. "I… I…," I stuttered, and shoved his hand away when he put his hand under my chin, attempting to lift my head.

"Bella, what did I do? What is wrong?" He was clearly alarmed and annoyed, too, and I didn't know what to do. I didn't want to hurt him or push him away, but obviously I had already done that with my harsh reaction.

"Nothing," I cried out, desperately and utterly confused, hot tears of frustration and fury rolling over my face.

"I don't understand," Jake said, and I felt him looking at me intently. He was trying to figure me out, trying to understand what was making me upset.

This meadow was driving me crazy. The memories of my dream were driving me crazy. My own indecision was driving me crazy. I couldn't bear it anymore. I needed to get away from here, where everything reminded me too much of Edward, and where Jake had looked at me with lust-filled eyes.

Agitated, I wheeled my bike forward and Jacob stepped away from me, concern and anger evident in his face as I fought my way up the path.

It was the pain in his eyes that made me react a second time. "It's not you, it's me. Okay?" I yelled over my shoulder, trying to make him understand. At the same time I realized what a drama I put up.

I was tired of running away and hiding my feelings out of fear. Suddenly, all of my anger deflated like air leaking from a balloon, and I let the bike drop to the ground. "I'm sorry, Jake," I squeaked, not daring to look him in the eyes.

.

**_A/N: Uh, sorry – I'm ending with a cliffy this time. Please, don't be too upset with Bella. I always understood her as being very undecided and torn between her love to Edward and her love to Jacob. This is why she's still contemplating her decision whether to move on with Jacob. Be patient, she will come around, and Jacob gets his happy ending. I promise._**


	8. Breaking Point

**A/N: Without Project Team Beta you would've to read chapters overflowing with awkward sentences, grammar issues and punctuation errors. You should be thankful to my first beta Kayla Cullen-I am! McGee42 has been my second beta this time. She did an awesome job. Wolfish hugs to you, girls.**

**Of course I don't forget about my readers. Without you I would write this story for myself. Well, I do in a way, but it's more fun knowing that people like what I'm doing. Wolfish hugs to you, too. **

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

* * *

_**Chapter 8 - Breaking Point**_

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_**~~Jacob~~**_

.

"What do you mean?" I asked her, bewildered. "What do you mean by It's not you, it's me?_" _She wouldn't break up with me, now would she? I drew in a sharp gasp; ready to fight for our friendship... _relationship... _whatever it was that we had and desperately hoped that her words weren't meant the way they sounded

"Why are you upset?" I asked her finally, my voice raspy, hands sweaty. I bent down to look into her face, but avoided touching her since she had slapped my hand away earlier when I tried.

Bella's face turned into a deep shade of red—she blushed a lot today—and her eyes flitted over the ground, over the meadow, and the forest – but she didn't look at me. I could tell something was off and knowing this made my stomach tie up in knots.

Finally, she answered, mumbling so quietly I could barely hear her, "You stared at me." For the shortest moment she lifted her head and looked me in the eyes.

"What?" I shouted, and barked out a nervous laugh. All this was because I had been staring at her? "I didn't stare at you," I defended myself, and my voice squeaked like that of a ten-year old.

Bella snorted and kicked her foot against a stone. "You did."

_Okay. She was right. I had been staring.__ I don't feel guilty though._ "Well, but I..." I searched for words, as I couldn't think straight. "Look, Bells. You're pretty. I like looking at you." Even though it might not have been wise, I embraced Bella, ignoring the fear that bubbled up inside me. I just wanted her to feel what I was feeling for her. "I didn't mean to offend you," I said into her hair. "You know I love you, Bella. And when I look at you, it's because I love you, and I find you very attractive."

Bella didn't respond to my embrace, but she didn't push me away, either. Maybe not all was lost. I buried my hands into her hair, still holding her close to me. "I just wish you would come around. I want you to open up finally. You're wasting your life, Bella."

She sighed and pressed her face into my chest. All tension left her when she whispered, "Jacob."

I stepped back and took her face in both of my hands. Gently, I lifted her head, making her look at me. Our eyes locked, and I felt something stir inside me. I stared into her eyes, and she stared back, intensely. It was as if she not only looked into my eyes, but looked into my soul. I recognized a stray tear roll down her cheek, and I wiped it away with my thumb.

As I wanted to tell her once more how much she meant to me, everything around me suddenly seemed to disappear. It was as if a thick fog would hide the world around us and would leave us in our own little bubble.

In that moment, only Bella existed around me. Nothing but her held meaning. To me it felt as if _something_ wanted to break free, wanted to engulf us. It was strange, making my heart speed up and my breath accelerate. My stomach twisted in anticipation. Yet, I was not afraid. "Bella," I whispered, my thumbs gently stroking over her cheekbones. The _something_ that I couldn't name grew stronger and stronger, pushing to the surface.

Then, in my head I heard words in a language I had never heard before, but nevertheless I understood their meaning. It was only the faintest echo of a memory, tugging at my soul from deep within. _You will pine for me and long for my soul. It will only be me that can make you happy, yet you will never have me, _the male voice said, making my hair stand on end.

I shuddered and shook my head in confusion, trying to get rid of it. It was disturbing like a bad memory. It seemed to be my memory, but how could that be? No one had ever said something like this to me or to some one other in my presence. It almost sounded like a curse, and it gave me the creeps.

"Bella," I said again, brushing the memory aside impatiently. I tried to read her eyes, hoping that she felt this special moment between us, too.

Bella grabbed my hands and tried to pry them away from her face. Her heart beat faster, and her breath left her in short gasps. "Jake?" She frantically searched my eyes and then I was sure that she could feel it as well.

The feeling intensified and time seemed to stand still. I couldn't hear the birds anymore. I couldn't smell the forest. It was only her.

"Please, Jacob, don't," she pleaded and closed her eyes. With that the magic of the moment was gone and everything was as it had been before. Slightly shaking her shoulders, I tried to make her look at me, but she held her eyes closed. "Don't," she repeated, sounding desperate, and pulled back.

Her words hurt, but I wouldn't give up easily. "You're fighting it, Bella. You're holding back. You're still afraid," I growled out, knowing that I was frustrated.

"No, Jake," she cried out. "You're wrong. I'm much better. I still need some time, though. Please."

I let her go and threw my hands in the air. "You're driving me nuts, Bells," I said to her in all honesty, and tugged my hair in frustration. "You're acting weird, and I don't understand you. One moment you're staring at me as if you want to jump my bones, and the next you're pulling away and shut down." I was really dashed, primarily because I didn't seem to get anything right when it came to her.

Bella bit her lip, looking at me with huge eyes, and shuffled her feet through the grass. She blushed again when she spoke up, "I'm confused, Jacob. I told you it's me. I'm doing better, but I-"

"Yeah, yeah. I get it. You need more time," I spat out, sounding really harsh. I picked up her bike and put it in front of her. "Let's go."

We drove back to the beach in an uncomfortable silence. It ate me up on the inside, but I was really upset. Also, I was afraid that in my rage I would say things to her that I would regret later. That was why I preferred to keep my mouth shut.

When we arrived at Second Beach, we handed the bikes back to Colin and Brady, and I walked her to her truck.

Bella, nervously playing with her car keys, broke the silence eventually and said apologizing, "Jake, I'm sorry. I never wanted to be rude to you. Actually, I came by today because I wanted to invite you to a party, but somehow I managed to ruin our day royally."

"You're forgiven," I replied, not wanting anything to stand between us. I couldn't be mad at her. She needed me to be there for her. Still, I didn't want her to get away so easily. "But you've got to admit that you've been really bitchy today," I grumbled.

Her lower lip quivered and she looked really miserable. "Yeah, I was. Look, can't we forget about earlier? Today it's just..." she said, hiding her face in her hands. "I had this dream last night and I'm really..." Bella stopped talking and huffed, exasperated.

"What dream, Bella? Did you have another nightmare?" As soon I had asked, she blushed. I scratched my head. Why was she embarrassed about a dream? What the heck was going on in her head? Then a light dawned on me. I couldn't stop grinning, curious about what exactly she had been dreaming and opened my mouth to say something teasingly.

"Dare you, Jacob Black," Bella replied, after looking at me through her fingers.

_Ah, she knew me well..._ I lifted my hands in a placating gesture. "I'll be good. What party?" I asked, grinning. I was dying inside, longing to know more about her dream.

"Jessica's party," Bella explained, fidgeting with the hem of her shirt. "She said she planned on throwing this party since she started high school, and all of her friends are invited. The party will start in the evening, and I want to go with you. I also want you and Billy to come to my graduation and spend the day with me and dad."

She looked at me with pleading eyes, and, of course, I promised that I would go with her. After all, I couldn't resist her and I wouldn't give up fighting for her. I was willing to be patient, hoping that she would eventually come around.

Later that night when Bella had gone home, I sat in the garage and worked on a little piece of wood. As I created a little wolf figure, my thoughts ran in circles, and I recalled this strange moment in the meadow over and over again. I wondered what had happened then. One thing I was sure of was that the moment held a strange magic. Was this what happens when a wolf imprints? If so, then what the heck stopped it? Did the strange voice I heard in my head break the spell? Or was it because Bella closed her eyes? Was intense eye contact the key to imprinting?

Another question went through my head: Imprinting was said to be a "first sight" thing, but of course I had seen Bella countless times since my transformation. Not finding the answer left me sad and frustrated. Also, I feared that I wouldn't be making any progress anytime soon, and that Bella wouldn't be able to move on.

Since that day in her kitchen, I had thought that Bella's heart and soul were healing. The way she looked at me had changed. She had been cautious for a very long time, now she watched me with a caring, loving, and even adoring shine in her eyes. Sometimes, I could see a longing upon her face that sent shivers down my spine. Yet, she was really acting strangely today, and her mood swings knocked me flying.

Eventually, I put my knife aside and stretched my muscles. I looked at the sky and then at the wall clock, realizing that it was late. Really late. _4 a.m. in the morning?_ _Did I really spend six hours in here?_ Crap, I didn't even tell my dad that I was home again. Quickly, I stored the wooden wolf in a drawer of my work bench and hurried home.

The following days went by slowly. Every day, I guided a group of tourists through our forest, annoyed with the female tourists' attempts to flirt with me. I endured it, since it was easy earned money.

Bella spent a lot of time with me. She would visit me almost daily, and when she was working at Newton's, I would pick her up at the end of her shift. Things were almost back to normal. We even shared some kisses now and then, which gave me hope that everything would be fine someday.

When Friday came, I dressed into a more formally outfit. The day earlier, I had bought myself a black button-down shirt and new black jeans, since I didn't really have any good clothes that fit me anymore, being that I had grown so much.

The hour before we had to leave, I went into the garage and pulled the wolf figure out of my drawer. I had wrapped it into a clean piece of fabric, but I needed to take another look at it, checking that everything was alright. I wasn't happy yet, and so I took the sandpaper and rounded over the edges, until I was completely satisfied with my work. Then, I carefully put the wolf charm and a leather cord into my pants pocket and headed back home.

I helped dad into my car, put his wheelchair into the trunk, and then we drove to Forks high school, where Charlie was already waiting for us.

"Guys, hurry up. They start any minute." Charlie was nervous, but it didn't stop him from scowling at me.

_Great, he's still mad at me, _I thought. Since he had caught us making out in his kitchen, we hadn't seen each other again. He obviously wasn't over his rage yet.

Charlie heaved the wheelchair out of the trunk, while I helped my dad out of the car and into his wheelchair. Charlie insisted on pushing the wheelchair, and dad commented on Charlie being an old man now that Bella was graduating.

We took our seats, which were stuck between hundreds of people. Only minutes later, the graduates came in; wearing blue and yellow gowns. Bella seemed nervous. She looked straight ahead and didn't look up to search for me or her father. Restlessly, I bounced my legs up and down while I listened to the principal's speech.

Later on, Mike Newton made the valedictorian speech. He talked about starting a new period of life and how much all of them had grown to together, and how they had to go their separate ways and live up to their parents' expectations. Yada. Yada. Yada.

His speech annoyed me, since it showed me exactly the predicament I found myself in. I knew that I was expected to be the Alpha of our pack, being that my great-grandfather was and it was in my blood. The problem was that I wasn't interested in becoming the Alpha, let alone phase into a wolf.

From where I sat, I could watch Bella. Most of the time, she seemed lost in her thoughts, her eyes fixed to the ground. When the first student walked up the podium, she started biting her lip. Seconds later, she frowned and grew pale. Her breath left her in short, sharp gasps, and she wrapped her arms around her chest. I knew then that she was having another one of her episodes. When it was her turn to go and get her diploma, she walked as if she were in a trance with a forced smile upon her lips, looking utterly lost and miserable.

"What the heck?" Charlie hissed when he saw her, glancing at me and then Bella again.

I shrugged my shoulders and shook my head, letting him know that I didn't know what was up with her again. Charlie shot me daggers, as if I was responsible for her condition. Only for appearance's sake, I jumped up and started cheering when the principal gave her the diploma. I realized at that moment that I couldn't go on like this anymore. I couldn't go on watching how Bella let herself to get hurt by memories of _him _over and over again. I hated that she didn't fight it, that she didn't give me a real chance. On top of that, it definitely didn't make it any better that Charlie's wrath now seemed to concentrate on me instead on _him, _who had actually caused her condition.

Bella looked up when she heard me cheering and when she saw me, she threw me a smile. This time it didn't calm me down, didn't make me feel better.

Then, the yellow hats rained down and the graduates started to hug each other. Charlie rushed forward, pushing rather rudely through the crowd, until he reached Bella and took her in his arms.

I hesitated, not knowing what to do. I needed to talk to her somewhere quiet, I needed to explain to her how I was feeling. I desperately wanted to find a way to make her come around, make her finally see reason, but for the first time since I fell in love with her I was hopeless.

"Just go to her, Jacob," Dad said, pushing his elbow into my ribs. He looked at me, too knowingly for my liking.

I saw Bella was looking at me over her father's shoulders, while he still had her in his embrace and patted her back repeatedly. Her eyes begged me to come over, and my feet walked towards her on their own. After all, I still couldn't stay away from her.

I took her into a tight embrace, holding her a little bit longer than usual, before I let her go and said, "Congratulations, Bells."

I could see that she was still psyched up. She had that special look in her eyes. Being so close to her, I also noticed she was shaking, and I wanted her to feel better, no matter what it would cost me.

"Are you alright, Bells?" I whispered into her ear while rubbing her back soothingly.

She sighed, relaxing in my arms and declared, "I miss Alice. I wish she could be here with us…"

_I know who you really miss__, _I wanted to reply harshly, but kept my mouth shut, knowing that a snarky remark wouldn't really help to make her feel better. To my surprise, I figured out that I was jealous, but how could I be jealous when _he _wasn't even here?

Charlie then impatiently tapped my shoulder. "Let's go eat something," he said to us. "I booked a table at The Lodge. The sky's the limit today." He laughed, but he couldn't hide his concern.

Bella forced another smile upon her face while her eyes stayed sad. "Sure, The Lodge, cool."

Charlie put his hand on Bella's back and urged her forward. "Okay then, let's go to The Lodge. Jacob, get Billy. We'll meet there."

When we arrived, the restaurant was stuffed with people. Obviously, all of the graduates and their folks were eating here. After all, The Lodge was the only upscale restaurant in town.

Bella and her father were already seated, and Bella beckoned us to their table. She smiled at me, looking much better now. My heart started to beat frantically as I came closer and saw what she was wearing. Her dress had the straps tied in a knot around her neck, leaving part of her back and shoulders bare.

"You look gorgeous," I whispered into her ear, and bent down to kiss her cheek before I sat down next to her.

Bella blushed and smiled again. She checked me out, nibbling at her lip and confessed, "You look great, too, Jake."

As she looked at me like that I was willing to forget what had bothered me before. Maybe not everything was lost. Since Billy and Charlie were wrapped up in their own conversation and Charlie wasn't watching me like a hawk, I took Bella's hand, pressing it slightly.

Even though the moment was quite peaceful, and Bella really looked as if she were in love with me, I couldn't ignore the event from earlier. I needed to get it off my chest.

"Tell me about the little lee—" I said, but interrupted myself. She hated it when I called the Cullens leeches or bloodsuckers. "Tell me about the tiny vamp. Why did you miss her today?"

Bella frowned and peered up at me observantly. "Alice was my best friend. I miss her, and I really wanted her to graduate with me today…" Her voice became smaller and smaller, until I had a hard time understanding her over the background noises.

"Did you miss _him_, too?" I asked, and let go of her hand. My stomach clenched in anticipation as I waited for her answer.

She visibly gulped, feeling obviously uncomfortable, but replied honestly with a simple, "Yes."

"Of course..." I said through gritted teeth, attempting to stay reasonable as I got angry with her. I was disappointed. What did I expect? It would always be _him._ I snorted, a sarcastic remark almost rolling from my tongue, but before I could say anything stupid, the waitress approached our table, expecting our orders. I hadn't even checked the menu and, to be honest, the thought of eating made me sick to my stomach. But as Bella, Charlie, and my dad look at me expectantly, I ordered French fries and steak.

The waitress left, Charlie and my dad took up their conversation again, and I nervously played with my napkin until Bella took my hand.

"Jake, I'm sorry," she said softly.

"I've had it up to here with your 'I'm sorry,'Bella," I hissed under my breath as my rage flared up full force. "I thought you were better. You told me you were better, but you still fucking cling to him."

Bella gasped and paled. Charlie stopped talking and glared at me warningly. Long seconds passed until he turned his attention back to my dad.

"No, Jake. That's not true," Bella whispered fiercely then. "I'm really better." She put one of her hands on my face and leaned forward, pleading, "Please, believe me."

I shook my head. "I saw you, Bella. I was afraid you would lose it in front of all of those people."

"I'm so sorry, Jake." Bella moved back to her seat and reached for my hands again. Her voice trembled when she said, "I heard his voice… in my head."

"You heard his voice?" I asked, disbelievingly. "Are you kidding me? What the heck is wrong with you, Bella?" Suddenly, I felt cramped and too hot, and fumbled the collar of my shirt loose.

_I need to get out of here._

"Excuse me, but I have to leave," I spat, and pushed my chair back. I stood up and left the restaurant with long, angry strides.

I was vibrating by the time I reached the parking lot, and I wanted nothing more but to roar my anger out. I really needed to get a hold on myself, or I would phase right here in the middle of the town.

There was a park right behind The Lodge and that was where my feet led me. My head was spinning, as I desperately wanted Bella to be my girlfriend, but at the same time feared that she would never give me a real chance. I just couldn't go on like that. One could only take so much.

I heard the restaurant door burst open and someone hurried out. I recognized Bella by her footsteps, but I wasn't ready to face her yet. I was still too upset and I really didn't want to fight with her.

Bella whispered my name, but I stayed hidden behind a tree. She called me for a second time, and still, I didn't respond. I felt regret, realizing that I had embarrassed her in front of all every one—and our fathers—acting like an utter moron.

"Jake, I know you're here…" she called out, using more force now, and walked across the parking lot towards the park, obviously knowing that she would find me here.

_Man up, Black, _I told myself, and I finally stepped out of the shadowy park. My heart beat hard and fast against my chest. The last remnants of my fury magically disappeared when Bella started to run towards me.

She wore a long, white dress that reached her knees. The skirt billowed around her. Her tight top hugged her chest in all the right places. It amazed me to actually find her wearing red pumps with small, slender heels that accentuated her beautiful legs. A red belt completed her outfit, making her waist look very tiny. I was blown away.

"Jake…" Bella stopped before me, breathing hard. "Don't go, Jake…" Her eyes were pleading with me to stay, and they worked magic. I was rooted in my spot.

_Why did I leave in the first place? Oh yeah, right... _

"I... I needed some space… had to think," I stuttered, trying to explain to her why I had run away. I fumbled with the collar of my shirt again, feeling uncomfortable and overdressed.

She threw her arms around me and pressed her face into my chest, mumbling, "I'm so sorry, Jake."

I groaned and brought my arms up, wrapping them around her. The pressure in my chest increased, and, despite feeling so close to her, I knew that I couldn't stall confessing my feelings anymore. She needed to know once and for all times what her flip-flopping did to me – and I needed to know if she loved me. If Bella told me that she loved me, I was willing to deal with her issues. If not, well, I would take a time out. I couldn't go on like this anymore.

"We need to talk, Bells," I said, and took her hand, pulling her away from the parking lot and into the park. We needed some privacy for this conversation, and nobody would see us here.

Bella gasped as I dragged her along with me. When I stopped behind some trees, she stared at me with huge, scared eyes. _Did she know what was to come?_

"I can't go on like this," I declared in a quiet voice, putting my cards on the table. I noticed that I still held her hand when Bella grasped it very tightly.

"Jake..." she breathed shocked, and she grew pale.

I knew I was shocking the hell out of Bella with my confession, but she needed to know what her mood swings did to me. I was done beating myself up for her when I wouldn't get anything in return. "I can never be sure what triggers your flashbacks. You nearly lost it today. I'm so… disappointed."

"But nobody looked at us. Nobody recognized my … slip," she rushed out, defending herself.

"Your dad saw it," I replied angrily, "And he connected your condition with me, but that isn't the point." I stepped back and ran my hands through my hair. "It's what it does to me. When I see you like this... and knowing that everything I do is not enough to make you love me..." I pulled my hair so hard that it actually hurt, but it was nothing compared to the pain I felt in my heart. "It's killing me, alright?" I hissed through my clenched teeth. "We can't go on like this."

.

-oOo-

.

**A/N: Eh, I know. Please, don't hate me. Just be confident that everything will work out just fine. **


	9. I love you too

**Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.**

**A/N: My heartfelt thanks to Jakejunkie and JUL5957. Without Jakejunkie I wouldn't have finished re-writing this chapter in months. She's my muse, pre-reader and -beta. Honestly, she did a great job! Juls, you know I love you. You're giving all of my stories the final touch. Thank you for that. **

**A/N2: Are you waiting for Bella to finally see some sense? She will…**

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_**Chapter 9 **_

_**– I love you too –**_

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_**~~Bella~~**_

_**.  
**_

"Jake, please, don't…" I whispered anxiously and crossed my arms, hugging myself as I tried to grasp the meaning of his words. _Was he going to break up with me?_

It would serve me right though, because I was insane. Insane. Crazy. Nuts. I might have fought the memories of him, but they kept on coming anyway. The truth was I didn't feel strong enough and didn't _really_ try pushing them away, because until now, I thought those memories would keep me connected to _him._ I heard _his _voice in my head at numerous times, in numerous situations, and when I least expected it. When I had heard _him_ "talking" to me today during graduation, I was totally unprepared and it threw me for a loop. I realized the time had come that I had to decide what I _really _wanted. Should I hang on to the memories of my past, of him, or should I move on and finally continue living my life without _him_? Could I let go of _him_ already?

"Why didn't you tell me that you're hearing _his_ voice? How is this possible?" Jacob hissed angrily. "You never told me that you can communicate with him like this."

"I can't, Jake. I don't. He isn't really there." I gnawed at my lips, embarrassed with myself. "It's when I'm in a rush, adrenaline rush, that I hear him." I was sobbing by now. "I couldn't let you know. I was so scared you'd think I'm crazy… Do you think I'm crazy, Jake? Please… I'm not. I don't want this anymore. I want it gone."

Jacob was pacing in front of me, furious, worried and confused. "_I love you_, Bella, and it disgusts me to know that he still has this hold on you. You have to let him go."

"I know, Jake. I'm trying to," I said tearfully, diverting my eyes and looking to the ground. I really wished I could tell him that I loved him, too. "I… I…" I stuttered, wringing my hands, but the words just wouldn't come. Finally, I looked to the ground, annoyed with myself. I was too scared to say it out loud, too afraid that once I said the words he would leave me – like _he_ did.

Jacob came stood in front of me, placing his hand on my shoulders. "You don't let me in," he growled frustrated. "You should have told me. I'm your best friend. Best friends don't keep secrets from each other, especially not when it is this important."

"I'm sorry, Ja—"

"Stop apologizing," he yelled, kicking a tree forcefully. "I can't hear it anymore. Will you ever give me a chance? Do you care about me at all?_"_

"But I do care about you," I cried out, clenching my hands. "Don't doubt that."

Kicking his foot repeatedly against a mossy tree trunk, he spat, "Then why do you still think about _him_?" and crossed the space between us in two big strides.

I froze. He had never spoken to me like this. Was he finally fed up with my craziness? The thought of losing him was unbearable. What would I do if he left me, too?

Jake was the one who took the pain away. He never placated my choice or inexperience the way _he _did. He made me laugh with his witty remarks and smile through caring gestures. His sincerity warmed me from the inside.

He was my light, my sun, my Jake.

I flinched when he suddenly bent down and hooked his finger under my chin, lifting it up, forcing me to look at him. I stared at him, scared stiff and feeling transported back in time—when _he _had told me that I wasn't good enough, when _he _told me _he_ didn't want me anymore.

"Talk to me, Bella," Jacob demanded, narrowing his brows worriedly, but no words fell from my lips. There was this huge, black emptiness inside me that stopped me from functioning. I wanted Jake to just take me in his arms, I wanted him to see my misery, and I wanted him to understand that it wasn't about him. I wanted to say goodbye, to let go, and to move on from Edward, but his memory haunted me. It prevented me from embracing new relationships and new experiences. Why was I allowing a memory to hold me back? What was the memory of Edward protecting me from?

It should be so easy, so simple. All I had to do was say the words and let my past go. Why was this so hard? What was I afraid of? I trusted Jacob, but every time our relationship progressed I pulled away. He didn't deserve that. He deserved to be loved with everything I had—just like the way he loved me.

We stood there silently. Finally, Jacob dropped his hand. "I understand," he said quietly, stuffing his hands into his pockets, turning his back on me. "So this is it?"

_Wait!_ It wasn't Edward's memory holding me back. I was doing this to myself! I was protecting me! Edward wasn't stopping me from making friends or loving Jacob. I protected myself from ever feeling unwanted, unloved… from feeling to be not enough, and with doing so, I stopped myself from living. The realization made my head spin.

"No!" I whispered hoarsely, "I need you, Jake." I tried to reach out for him, but the panic I could lose him paralyzed me. "Don't leave me. I'll go and see a shrink if that will make me better. Don't leave me, please…"

He spun around, his eyes blazing. "I wish you would finally see ME," Jacob shouted and grabbed me by my arms, shaking me hard.

"But I do, Jake. Really, I do!" I sobbed. Hot tears ran down my face. "You're different than _him._"

"Damn right. I'm different than him. I'm alive!" Jacob let go of me and stepped back. He looked so damn angry that I felt scared. Really scared. I never wanted to upset him, let alone hurt him so much.

"No, Jake, listen to me. You got me wrong," I said pleading, trying to make him understand. The numbness in my limbs started to fade and I felt anger boiling in my stomach. "I won't let you walk out on me, too."

"Why, Bella? Tell me one good reason why you want me to stay?" Jacob growled, clenching his hands, walking further away from me as he started shaking all over.

I gasped as the space between us enlarged. There was no chance that I would let him go. He meant too much to me. I just couldn't let him walk away from me, walk out of my life. I needed him.

I flung myself forward, clumsily stumbling into him.

"Bella," he gasped in surprise, instinctively catching me.

Acting on pure instinct, I wrapped my arms around his neck already and pulled him towards me. I wouldn't allow him to leave. "Jake…"

I started to kiss him, desperate and hard. He needed to know how much he meant to me. "Don't go, Jake," I pleaded between my kisses, but he didn't kiss me back. My heart pumped in my chest. _Was it too late already? _

"Why, Bella?" he finally ground out and grabbed my hair, tilting my head back.

I stared into his face, trying to imagine how life would be without him. A faint tremor shimmied down my spine. No, I couldn't imagine living without Jacob, but what if he imprinted one day? My breath got caught in my chest. I would lose him if he found his imprint. Jake himself had told me how strong the imprint pull was, irresistible even. A wolf couldn't be without his imprint and the imprint wouldn't deny the wolf. I knew about the Sam, Emily, Leah triangle. Jake had told me everything he knew about it, even though it made him uncomfortable to talk about it. I knew enough to be aware that IF… no… WHEN Jacob imprinted, I would lose Jacob for good. The simple idea left me breathless.

All those thoughts raced through my head within seconds, but then hope flared up within me. Imprinting was supposed to be rare. If we were lucky, Jacob wouldn't imprint at all, but if I didn't open up and give him his chance, I could easily lose him today, right here, right now, already.

I looked into his eyes not being able to withdraw. I saw his love for me, and the adoration, but I also saw the pain I caused him. He wanted me so much, and I simply couldn't deny him that anymore. He meant so much to me and the intensity with which I feared to lose him was overwhelming. It finally made me aware that I really had to feel more for him than just friendship. In this moment, I knew I was willing to take the risk. I was willing to jump right into this. In this moment, I knew that I was in love with him.

"I love you, Jake. I'm totally in love with you," I blurted out before I could overthink it again. It was the truth. I really meant it. I was in love with my best friend. I was in love with Jacob Black.

Tears streamed down my face from all the emotional turmoil, and then I smiled through my tears, repeating, "I love you, Jake. I love you, too."

Jacob groaned deeply, his arms tightening around my body. "I never wanted to push you, Bells," he confessed, his lips now feverishly running over my cheeks, my eyes and my lips. His breathing accelerated. "But it's only because I love you so much. I feel so torn and mad when I think of sharing you with him. Even when it's only a memory that I fight with…"

My heart ached at his words, but after having this little epiphany, I knew what I had to do. I had to let go of Edward and move on. I had to stop letting the memory of him influence me. I had to trust my heart, remove _him_ from my heart and mind, and say goodbye.

As if knowing my thoughts, Jacob pulled away from me slightly. "You need to really let him go. If he wanted you back, don't you think he would have come for you already?" he growled into my ear.

I gasped and felt the hole in my chest trying to open again, but then there were his lips and his arms, and heat...

"Bells, he lured you in." His hands gently rubbed my back. "It's in their nature… hypnotizing you, pulling you in…" His voice was laced with aversion. "You're not the only one affected. Their presence here affected me, the pack... You're not alone in this. It has altered all of us…"

"I'm sorry, Jake."

"It's nothing you can change. So stop apologizing," he replied harshly. "I can't change what was set in motion for my people, either." For the shortest moment his eyes glared with hatred and his face became hard and rigid.

Jacob cupped my face with his hands. "All we can do is moving forward by accepting what is right in front of us. This connection we have… It's scary as hell for me, too, but you're the only one I dream of, I think of. You're the only one I will ever want. You are it for me." His lips brushed over mine and the hold of his hands around my face tightened. "I know what he did to you, but I would never do that. I will never leave you like that… never hurt you. I promise…"

I wrapped my arms around his waist, pressing myself flush to his chest, and then I kissed him with all I had.

"Bells," he groaned, his hot breath hitting my face, and he spun around, pushing me up against a tree.

Surprised, I cried out when my bare back made contact with the rough texture of the tree. His lips begged mine open, his tongue slipping into my mouth. Our kisses became frantic as we suckled and licked and nipped at each other. Eventually, we broke apart, gasping for air.

Jacob's lips found its way down to my jaw and my neckline. One of his hands slipped under my dress, stroking over my knee and the back of my thigh, and suddenly he hitched my leg up, wrapping it around his waist.

With a wild gasp, I grasped his shoulders and pulled him into me, wrapping my other leg around his waist as well.

Jacob pressed his body into me, his breathing becoming excited, and his hands moved higher on my thighs. He kissed me again, prying my lips open and plunging his tongue into my mouth.

I felt his hands cupping my butt, kneading it, and searing my skin. My body's reaction was instinctual. My heart started to race and my hips bucked and rubbed against the seam of his jeans, making contact with something long and hard underneath. I gasped again at the realization that I was rubbing myself against his erection; the proof how much he wanted me. The friction caused me to shudder in pleasure as did the knowledge that I was turning him on.

He groaned deeply, but stopped kissing. Grinding against my center, he whispered into my ear, "Did he ever kiss you like that, Bella?"

I whimpered and shook my head no, dizzy and disoriented, but desperate for more.

"That's good." He growled, trailing kisses along my jaw and neck. His tongue slipped past his lips, licking the tender skin of my throat, and the tingling in my body settled between my legs.

I tugged his hair, missing his lips on mine. "Kiss me, Jake," I begged, and he moved back up, his mouth hovering inches above my face. Then he spoke again, his voice reverberating through my entire body, "I can help you forget him and see only me."

His mouth crashed down on my lips, surely bruising them by the sheer force of his kiss, but I was too far gone to care.

.

**-oOo-**

.

"Mi…ke," a female voice called out, giggling exaggerated, catching our attention.

"It's Jessica," I whispered, breaking away from our kiss, and clasped my hand over my mouth.

Not a moment later, she came stumbling through the trees, with Mike Newton on her heels. He had his hands all over her, feeling her up urgently.

"Oh, sorry." Jessica came to a sudden hold when she saw us and blushed. Then her eyes widened as she saw me and Jake, my legs still wrapped around his waist.

The look on Mike's face was hilarious. His mouth fell open and he gaped at us, looking like an idiot.

I giggled, pressing my face in Jake's chest. Slowly, he let me slide back to my feet, steadying me with his arms when I swayed a bit. The moment was awkward as we four stared at each other silently, and I shuffled my feet uncomfortably.

"So, you and Jacob Black, huh?" Mike finally asked, grinning all over his face.

"Uhm, we… I…" I stuttered, embarrassed to be caught in the act – again – but then I said proudly, smiling up at Jake, "YES."

Jacob smiled back at me and took my hand. "Let's get out of here, Bells," Jacob suggested, pulling me after him, leading me out of the woods.

"See you at my party…" Jessica called after us, snickering. I couldn't help myself but giggle, too. Even though the situation had been awkward, at the same time it was so normal—normal for teenagers anyway.

"Shit," Jacob suddenly gasped and then his hands were at my back, slightly brushing over my naked skin. "You're hurt," he growled, carefully wiping something from my back. "I'm sorry." He blew the softest kiss onto my spine and I shuddered from the sensation.

"I'm fine, Jake. It doesn't hurt… much," I said with a wink. I felt really good. For the first time in months, I felt alive and so much lighter – as if a huge weight had been lifted of me. Thinking about our kissing, I absently touched my swollen lips and grinned, feeling delirious.

"If Charlie sees your back, Bells, I'm dead," Jake muttered when we walked out of the woods.

"I'll make sure not to turn my back on him," I answered with a placid smirk and quickly pecked him on his lips. "Oh, there they are."

Charlie and Billy stood outside already, talking with Mr. and Mrs. Webber, Angela's parents. During the conversation, Charlie's eyes roamed the parking lot and the forest behind, and then he saw us approaching. By the look of his face I could tell that he was upset, so I grabbed Jake's hand for moral support as we walked towards them.

"Where have you been?" Charlie asked, frowning when he saw me holding hands with Jake. "We've been waiting and you didn't even finish your meal."

Mrs. and Mr. Webber excused themselves and quickly walked away. Mr. Webber frowned at me and Jake, but Angela's mom smiled at me sympathetically.

"I'm sorry, Dad," I answered. I felt that I owed him an explanation for ruining our graduation dinner. "Jake and I had an argument, but everything is fine now."

Charlie gruffly handed me my jacket I had left in the Lodge, and I quickly put it on, remembering to hide the scratches our heated kiss had caused. Charlie gazed over me, checking if I was really alright or just pretending. I gave him a smile and pulled Jake's arms around my middle. There was something empowering about showing my feelings for Jake around Charlie.

"Charlie, why don't you give us a ride to your place? I'm sure the kids won't mind being on their own," Billy chimed in, trying to ease the tension.

"Yeah, we're going to Jessica's anyway," I replied, relishing Jake's heat.

"You'll be back at midnight, Bells," Charlie said sternly, but looked at Jacob instead of me.

"I'll take care of her." Jake wrapped his arm tighter around me and lightly rested his chin on the top of my head.

Charlie snorted, giving Jacob the evil eye. "I've heard that before."

Jake seemed unfazed, but I felt him tense. My stomach clenched. "Dad…"

Billy shook his head, clearly annoyed with Charlie. "Jacob will bring her in one piece."

"I know what goes on at those parties. Bella hasn't showed the best judgment lately," Charlie argued.

"Dad." I openly glared at him now. "You know me better than this."

"Do I?" Charlie growled. By the sound of his voice I knew that he referred to my motorbike escapades with Jake and how he had caught us making out in our kitchen.

Billy huffed irritated. "Could you just trust them, Charlie?"

Charlie, ignoring his friend, kept staring at Jacob pointedly. "The question is can I trust you, Jacob?"

"What the… Dad, of course!" I hissed through my teeth. "And in case you forgot, I'm 18 already. Cut me a break, alright?"

Charlie opened his mouth and closed it again. Obviously, he didn't know what to say to that. He knew I was right. Still, my heart fluttered in my chest and I nervously shifted my stance. I really wanted to spend this evening with Jake.

Jake's hand pressed down on my shoulder reassuringly. "I'll have her back at midnight. No drinking. No funny business," he promised to Charlie.

"Come on, Charlie, let's go," Billy insisted impatiently and rolled himself towards the cruiser.

Charlie grumbled, "Midnight on the dot," but finally stopped glaring at us and followed Billy. He turned one last time and said, "Have fun."

"Thanks, Dad." I waved him goodbye and watched him drive off. When his cruiser was out of site, Jacob and I shivered almost simultaneously, and I sighed deeply relieved. "Alright then…" Turning around in Jake's arms, I hugged him with all I had.

"I wonder if Charlie will ever like me again," Jacob said and chuckled.

I groaned and hid my face in his chest. "I don't know what's gotten into him, but it's really annoying."

We walked to Jake's rabbit without saying another word. We both felt uncomfortable in a way. The tension between us was still strong. We needed time to think and evaluate what just happened.

"What do we want do now?" I asked as I sat down in his car as graciously as I could. After all, grace really wasn't my best friend and the shoes I wore were dangerous. "There is still time left until the party starts."

"I don't know. First Beach maybe?" Jake suggested, backing out of the parking lot and looked at me expectantly.

"Sure." I nodded and leaned back in my seat, watching him. The ride was silent, but it was a comfortable silence. The sun was setting, enriching his face in a warm glow as he narrowed his eyes. He looked beautiful.

Jake stopped the car when we reached First Beach. He helped me out of the car and took my hand, leading me to the shore. Mid-walk, I stopped to take off my shoes. Walking with heels through the sand without breaking my ankle or worse was close to impossible.

"Your shoes…" Jake broke the silence as I let them dangle from my finger by their straps. "I like them…"

"Ah, yes… I was with Angela. She helped me find the dress and everything," I told him, enjoying the feel of the cool sand beneath my naked feet. Shopping with Angela was easy and fast. I'd fallen in love with the white dress and my red pumps almost instantly when we walked into that tiny boutique up there in Port Angeles. Angela didn't need to convince me at all to put it on. We even tried out several accessories like purses, necklaces, and hair ornaments, but, in the end, I settled with only a matching red belt. I thought that in some way with that dress I looked like Marilyn Monroe in the movie "Some Like it Hot".

Alice would be proud seeing me like this - all dressed up and… I forced the thought away. Tonight, I wouldn't think about _them. _This night belonged to Jake and me only.

Jake's eyes roamed over my body appreciating. "I like that dress, too, Bells," he whispered huskily. "You look so beautiful."

I blushed crimson and stopped walking. Nibbling on my lower lip, I looked up at him, repeating what I told him before, "I really meant it, Jake. I'm in love you. I'm sorry it took me so long to realize…" Again, I noticed how easy it was to say the words and how free I felt now that I admitted my feelings for him.

Jake placed his finger over my mouth to shush me. Then he took my shoes out of my hand, putting them to the ground. Before I could blink, he picked me up and had me in his arms – bridal style – carrying me towards are driftwood tree. There he sat me down, giving me one of his sunny smiles while he searched for something in the pocket of his pants.

"I want to give you something…" he said nervously, taking my hand and placing something small into it.

My heart started to race. "What's that?" I asked. "You know I don't like—"

"You're thinking too much," Jacob interrupted. "Just open it."

I fumbled around with the thin cord Jake had wrapped around a piece of fabric. My fingers trembled and my eyes glanced back and forth between his face and the present. When I finally had the cord lose, I saw that I held a small bag in my hand. I flipped the bag upside down, letting its content slip into my hand and my breath got caught in my throat.

"Jake…"

A wooden wolf laid in my hand, tiny, the size of half of my thumb and incredibly beautiful with astonishing details. "It's beautiful," I whispered and picked it up, gingerly holding it between my fingers. The last rays of the sun gave the wolf a deep russet color – the same color his skin had – and I ran my fingertips over its form, caressing the smooth surface.

"It's your graduation present," Jake said, edging a bit closer. His breath tickled my neck and I shivered. "I carved it for you." His voice was husky when he leaned into me, putting his arm around me.

"You did this?" I asked, overwhelmed. I thought this was the most beautiful present anyone ever gave to me.

"You like it, Bells?" Jake pulled a leather cord out of his pants pocket, threading it through a loop at the wooden wolf's back.

I nodded excitedly. "Oh, Jake! I love it. Help me to put it on." I gathered my hair in my neck, twisted it and pulled it up, slightly tilting my head to the side to give him easy access to my neck.

Behind me Jacob froze and a low rumble resonated from his chest. "Bella," he murmured and inhaled deeply.

I turned around, confused, to find Jake staring at me in a way that made my insides tremble. Suddenly feeling wary, I dropped my hands; my hair fell back down, covering my shoulders and bare back.

"Don't, Bells. Pull it up again. Please." His tongue darted out, moistening his lower lip. His hands trembled slightly when he held up the leather cord with the wolf charm securely fastened on it. His breath left him in shaky puffs as I lifted my arms again to bring up my hair.

Jake leaned forward and fastened the cord around my neck, adjusting the length until the wolf rested in the hollow of my throat. His fingers lingered there for a while, his breath caressed my skin, warming it. "It looks good on you," he finally whispered hoarsely, kissing the top of my head.

I inhaled shakily, let my hair fall down, and reached for the wolf charm, touching it lovingly. The wood had absorbed his body heat and I stated, "It's so warm. Like you."

Again, a low growl rolled from his lips. He cocked his head to the side and leaned closer, brushing his nose over my cheek and neckline, nipping the tender skin there for the tiniest bit. It gave me a thrill and I shuddered.

I lifted my arm, burying my hand in his thick, soft hair, tugging it slightly. "Jake?"

He leaned away from me, giving me some distance, and when he opened his eyes, they were almost black; heavy and blazing with something I couldn't define. It thrilled me that I had this effect on him, but I didn't know what made him look at me like that. "You ok, Jake?" I asked him timidly.

"I'm fine, Bells." He smiled, but it seemed strained. "I'm glad you like it. It took me a long time." Then he turned me around and slipped behind me, my back pressed against his front. He wrapped his arms around me and placed a peck on the side of my neck.

The spot tingled, but he didn't advance anymore. With a sigh, I let myself fall into his embrace and so we sat there together, without sense of time, watching the waves rolling to the sand.

.

**-oOo-**

.

We didn't go to Jessica's party. We felt comfortable being alone with each other, walking along the beach, holding hands and talking about everything that came to our minds. In fact, when the night proceeded we had completely forgotten that there was a party at all.

We were at my house at midnight – on the dot.

"I don't want this night to be over already," I admitted shyly, when Jake helped me out of the car.

He gave me one of his bear hugs. "I know, honey," he said, rubbing the small of my back. "But your dad is waiting for you."

I sighed and let go of him reluctantly.

The door opened and my dad came out, still looking so stern. I sighed again. I had hoped the evening with Billy would make him wind down. "Will you come in Bella? Jake."

Billy appeared at the doorstep. "Did you enjoy your evening?"

"Yes," I answered, looking at Jacob and smiled at him, totally smitten.

"Time to go, son," said Billy, rolling his wheelchair to the top of the front stairs.

"Bye, Bells." Jake leaned down and kissed me on my cheek. "Love you."

"Love you, too," I mouthed and slipped inside my house.

"Did you have a nice time?" Charlie asked me and closed the door. "Did you and Jacob clear everything up?"

I took my sweater from the peg and pulled it on, nodding reluctantly. "Yeah, we're fine."

"So," he said, sitting down beside me. "You're ok? Feeling better about things?"

I looked at Charlie in utter shock. "Yes… I think… I mean…" I stuttered. "Why do you ask?"

"I was just wondering…" Charlie knitted his brows, concentrating hard on something. Then he gestured to the place beside him and said, "Sit down, Bells." He waited, seeming nervous, until I was seated. "Look," he started. "I found this the other night when I was looking for your childhood photos. I hope you're not too mad at me for entering your room without asking first…" He pointed to a white envelope sticking out from between the pages of my old photo album. "Where did you get those airline tickets?"

I stiffened, pulling my jacket tighter around me. "Airline tickets?" I asked confused and then I realized what Charlie had found. The voucher for two airline tickets Esme and Carlisle had given me on my 18th birthday! "The Cullens," I whispered numbly, remembering how I had put the envelope holding the voucher on my shelf when Edward had brought me home after Carlisle had stitched up my arm. "I didn't realize I still had them." My voice cracked and my stomach twisted. _He_ had taken everything with him, left me nothing to remind me of him.

Charlie looked at me sympathetic and cautiously. He clearly feared that I was about to break down. "The voucher is about to expire and Renee wanted you to come for a visit. Maybe you should use that present to get there," he suggested.

"No," I answered flatly, staring at my trembling hands and waiting for the hole in my chest to rip open.

"Isn't it weird that they fell into my hands the same day Renee called me?" Charlie said.

I held out a hand, stopping him. "Can you give me a minute, Dad?" Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to spend some days with my mother. I hadn't seen her in months. I would love to visit her, but I didn't want to be separated from Jake.

The realization surprised me. Not too long ago, I surely would have broken down over those tickets because they reminded me of Edward and now, my only concern was being without Jake? I reached out tentatively and took the envelope in my hand. "I have to think about it," I said quietly.

"Bella," Charlie pressed my arm awkwardly, obviously wanting to give me some comfort. "I'll be in my room if you need me." He stood up. "Promise to call me when you are feeling bad."

I rose, too, and gave him an awkward hug. "I think I'll be fine."

Charlie sighed and shrugged. "Or, if you need…" He hesitated for a second. "If you need someone to talk to… maybe… call Jacob. I know he will listen to you…"

I threw my arms around his neck. "Thanks, Dad…" Spontaneously, I pecked him on his cheek. "I…" I stuttered a sigh of relief. "Thanks…." I pulled back and told him goodnight. Then I walked upstairs and went into my room, closing the door behind me.

I put the envelope on my nightstand and plopped down on my bed. Reluctantly, I took the paper into my hands, playing around with it and trying to figure out what I was feeling. I was confused, but I didn't feel the need to cry and the pain in my chest was only a faint throb and absolutely manageable. "Hmm," I muttered and touched the envelope with my fingertips.

Putting the envelope close to my face, I opened it, taking a deep breath. Could I still smell their scent? I smelled only paper and the light scent of ink, other than that I couldn't figure out anything. Frustrated with myself, I pulled the voucher out of the envelope, grazing the paper with my fingertips.

I couldn't remember for how long I stared at the letters. Eventually, I fell asleep, holding the tickets in my hands. When I woke up in the morning, I again stared at the tickets for a long time and suddenly I knew what to do.

I booted my computer and rushed into the bathroom to take a shower and brush my teeth. When I returned to my room, I typed in the web address of the airline and exchanged the voucher for two tickets easily. I only hoped that Jacob would want to come with me.

Then I called my mother, telling her that I would come but only if she agreed that I would bring my boyfriend. I fixed a quick breakfast and got ready to leave for my shift at Newton's while calling Jake, but he didn't answer the phone.

Anxious to tell him my plan, I tried to call Jake in the course of the day, but I never reached him. _Where was he?_

_._

_.  
_


	10. Chapter 8

**A/N: I do not own the Saga nor the characters. They belong to St. Meyer. I just mixed up the plot.**

**This works out to be the longest chapter by now.**

************************  


_**Growing**_

_JPOV_

I woke up when the most wonderful scent wavered through the house. Brownies. Yummy. My stomach was angrily roaring and my whole body felt stiff and achy.

_  
Damn._

I came up with a start. What time was it? I reached for my alarm clock and brought it to my face.

_  
2 freakin__' pm?_

How could I sleep so long? How was dad? I rocketed out of my bed and nearly bumped against the wall. Everything was swaying in my head. Being the long bean pole that I was my body needed some time to get its pieces together. I shook my head to clear it from the dizziness. My stomach once more growled hungrily. I stretched my achy neck and rolled the stiff shoulders. Sleeping so long didn't seem to please my muscles.

I opened the door and stepped into the floor. Someone had to be in the house. All my senses went into an alarm state. Silly. Only a friend would make brownies in our kitchen. But my werewolf instincts kept me prisoner for a moment. A strong tremor shook my muscles. I got all angry at myself. I sneaked around the corner to check and what I saw nearly knocked me off my feet.

There was Bella sitting next to my father helping him to hold a glass of water to his lips. There seemed to be a new kind of familiarity between them. I thought my heart would jump out of my chest when I watched Bella handling my father with gingerly care. And my father seemed to be absolutely comfortable with the situation even though otherwise he hated it be so helpless and at any other time had refused to be taken care of someone else than me. What I saw made me love her even more.

I backed away and fled into the bathroom. I needed a minute for myself to deal with my overwhelming feelings. Had Bella been there all the time? I knew she and her father came over yesterday evening. I had called her to tell what had happened. But then I couldn't remember anything from that time on. My brain wasn't working yet. I missed some hours of yesterday.

I thought Bella kneeling in front of my bed had been a dream as well as holding a soft female body tight to my own. But perhaps that had been reality? Okay, maybe that having her IN my bed part must have been a dream… I stripped out of my pants and my shirt and stepped into the shower. I hadn't showered since Monday and I meant to be reeking like a skunk. The water pelted down on my body and helped me to wake up finally. I hurried to soap and wash because I didn't want to hold Bella any longer responsible for my Dad. Not because I didn't like her to be around but because this was my job to care for him. I recognized that I was ashamed of myself for having slept so long. I towelled my body and wanted to dress but then realized that I had no fresh clothes with me.

_  
Yeah. Dumbass._ I muttered to myself. Now I would have to walk around with the towel around my hips. _Silly._ I felt the blood rushing into my head. I shouldn't be ashamed. She had seen me in my shorts and even with only my swim pants on. But being covered with only a towel seemed to be much more intimate and odd beyond belief. I wasn't ready for that yet. I concentrated on my breathing trying to calm me down. After my long sleep I should have been relaxed and easy with things coming upon me. But instead I felt itchy and irritated.

I silently slipped out of the bathroom and wanted to sneak back in my room. I wasn't lucky. No. I ran straight into her because she was standing right in the middle of the floor.

_  
Odd. odd. awkward. dump. situation. _

I wished for the ground to rip open and swallow me.

Bella's eyes grew big and as I opened my mouth to say something to make fun of the situation there was only hot air leaving my numb brain. Seconds felt like hours as we stood motionless like two statues. Finally Bella broke the ice and smiled.

"Jacob, I thought you would never wake up." She now very obviously ogled me which made me forget my embarrassment but instead my knees went shaky like Jell-O.

Where was all my confidence gone?

"How's dad?" I finally managed to say.

Bella tilted her head to the one side and then to the other. "I'm not so sure. He sleeps nearly all the time. But his pain seems to get better." She wrinkled her forehead and I understood she was worried. I reached out without thinking and stroked over that wrinkles to smooth them out.

"Thank you, Bells."

She leaned into my touch which made my jelly bones even more wobbling.

"You should have called me earlier, Jacob…" she whispered into my hand and her breath blew over my wrist. Each and every single one of my hair stood on end. And another part of my body reacted too. I dropped my hand and stepped back. Treacherous body of mine!

Bella still sized me up. Hadn't she just said something? I really couldn't remember. My fuddled brain refused his damned service. The only thing I could think of right now was … me all over her ?!? Argh.

"Jacob?" I watched her lips moving but didn't hear a thing. Was she laughing?

"Jake?"

A very unpleasant growling pulled me out of my trance. Bella was laughing even more.

"Hello, anybody in there?" She waved with her hand in front of my face.

I noticed another growl and a stabbing pain in my stomach. "Oh, I'm hungry…" I shook my head to clear my mind.

"Dinner's ready. You just have to walk into your kitchen…" Bella blinked at me. Her wonderful eyes were all warm and loving but also I saw her amusement.

Before I could foolishly drool over her again I turned around and went into my room. My sensible ears heard her snickering through the closed door.

Angry at myself I pulled out my shorts from my closet and a fresh white shirt and got dressed. A few months ago I had been a mere boy, lanky and clumsy, who was afraid of never starting to grow into a man. While my best friends Quil and Embry were having there first girlfriends and kissing experiences I rather spent my time in my garage fixing cars. And then along came Bella. I hadn't seen her for years and didn't remember her clearly. In fact I didn't remember her at all. When Billy told me I should fix the Truck for Charlie's daughter I had the blurry vision of a tiny, pale, freckled and curly haired girl in mind. But when we brought the Truck over there waited a full grown and very beautiful woman and I instantly fell in love with her.

For me Bella's return to Forks and my suddenly beginning growth spurt seemed to belong together, but Sam and the elders told me different. They had watched me getting bigger and bigger and when finally my genes kicked in I was to know everything. I learned that old legends were true and I now was a walking freak show. I would gladly trade those werewolf warrior and protector shit to be a normal human boy again but that of course would never be possible. Well, at least one thing seemed to be normal for teenagers. It was those hormone driven thoughts when I was around girls and especially when I was with Bella. All of my senses were focused on the one thing. My body commanded my brain without giving it any chance of control. I was ashamed of the dreams I had in the nights and of the mess I had made of myself when I finally woke up in the mornings.

I heard Bella rumouring in the kitchen and remembered my hunger again. I didn't know what has gotten into me today. I didn't want to be so moody and bad tempered. But still there was that fidgety nervousness in me that actually didn't belong to my normal behaviour. Maybe I only had to eat and then I would get better. I went into the kitchen where she already had served dinner. Before I could blink my eyes she had pushed me on a chair and set a bowl with a delicious looking rice salad in front of me.

"Eat!" Bella ordered. She placed her butt on the table and let her legs dangle. How could I eat when this very special and very sexy part of her was right before my eyes? Huh?

While ogling her nice ass I shoved the fork into my mouth and _dang! _What was that? When the food settled on my tongue I moaned over the flavour explosion in my mouth.

"That's wonderful!" I took another bite and I stared at her in disbelief. Had I ever eaten something that sensual and tasteful? I savoured rice, chicken, hazelnuts and raisins in combination with honey, cinnamon, ginger and pepper. I knew she was a good cook but this topped everything.

"I should keep you forever in my house." I said while I took another bite. It wasn't a joke at all, deep inside me I meant it. I felt how my itchiness melted away. Soon the bowl was empty and Bella filled it again.

"You know," I talked with my mouth full. "I get grumpy when I'm hungry."

She laughed. "I rather like you cheerful."

I finished the second bowl too and still wasn't satisfied. I needed more food. "I smelled Brownies. Would you mind giving me some?"

"Would it be better for me to keep you in a good mood?" She teased me but gave me two big pieces right into my hands. The brownies were still warm and smelled heavenly. I couldn't get a hold on me and tucked them away in an instant. This time the melting warm chocolate caressed my senses and I longed for more. Another two brownies later I leaned back in my chair and padded my full stomach. I happily sighed and smiled at her.

In the living room I heard dad shuffle his blanket and turned around. He seemed to be sleeping but I wasn't so sure. And although I rather wanted to chat and joke around with Bella I had to know what had happened while I had been sleeping.

"Update me," I asked her. "How's dad?"

_BPOV_

"Update me," Jacob asked me and stood up. "How's dad?"

While I started to tell Jacob about my morning with Billy he leaned on the counter and watched his father sleeping. Jacob was relaxed now but nevertheless he seemed to be different today. Maybe it was all the tension and sorrows of the last days that had worked on him that bad. From time to time a slight tremor ran over his back but he didn't seem to notice it. I was known to that shaking. Because of him being a werewolf now I had to be careful when he had those tremors. Even though I had seen it only a few times I remembered it clearly. His body used to tremble when he was very upset. But right now he wasn't. So I didn't understand.

I startled when Jacob passed me and rushed over to the sofa. Billy was awake. I watched the silent communication between father and son and heard them whispering to each other. I couldn't understand what they were talking because they used their Quileute language. I turned my back on them to give them their privacy and washed the dishes. I had loved to see him eating and I was glad when he came back to his normal self after a while. I remembered the moment when we met us on the floor and he only wore a towel around his waist. He had been so shy and even seemed to be unsure of himself but I couldn't stop swooning over him. To be honest to myself I had to suppress the urge to throw myself at him as I did at Monday night. When he had touched my sleeve I nearly gave in to my wish to kiss and *gulp* _lick_ the tender skin on his inner wrist. Only because I knew Billy could probably hear us and because of Jake's angry growling stomach I didn't.

The front door was pushed open with angry force. Scared stiff I dropped the soapy bowl into the sink and it broke in two. I swirled around to see what had happened. Jake and Billy were nowhere to see but instead a large girl was standing in the doorframe. She literally seemed to be steaming with rage. Her dark brown eyes were burning. She had shiny black hair but it was close-cropped similar to Jacob's hair.

"Swan?" She directly addressed me. I would have loved to back away but I already had the sink behind me.

"I am not your freakin' telephone service." The girl stepped closer as she spit her anger at me. I tried to answer but my throat was all closed up. I had never seen her and I didn't know why she was so furious with me.

"Your dad called to let you know that he comes to pick you up FINALLY." She nearly choked out the word 'finally' and stepped even closer. I winced. So much hatred emanated from her.

"Leah Clearwater." I heard Jacob yelling from the floor. "Get away from Bella!" So, Leah was it? Harry Clearwater's daughter? I hadn't recognized that. She looked so different, much older. But why did she hate me so?

Leah spun around and for a moment I thought she would attack him. Her neck muscles clenched as she hunched her shoulders forward. I was stunned to see perfect moulded muscle strands forming under her shirt and on her upper arms. "Black. Don't you have your own phone? I've got better to do than bringing news to your freakin' pale crush."

My mouth fell open. What was up with her?

"Don't call Bella that!" Jacob growled at her. His body tensed and he tried to step into the space between me and Leah. But the kitchen was too tiny for the three of us. He had no chance to come closer to me.

"Right." She choked. My eyes widened as I saw how Leah's back shuddered starting from her shoulders and down to her spine. Could that be? I gasped with the result that Leah turned to face me.

"Stop it. Now!" Billy shouted. I looked up to see him sitting in his wheel chair at the end of the floor. He was furious.

Leah's eyes narrowed into slits and then another tremor rocked down her back. Jacob pushed her to get her away from me but she didn't move an inch. I ducked my head and since she was so tall I could now easily slip away under her raised arm. Jacob caught me and shoved me behind his back away from this angry girl.

"Leah!" Jacob growled at her. I could feel that now rage rushed through his body and he trembled as well.

"Leah, Jacob. Out. Now!" Billy yelled from his far place. "Bella! Over. to. me!" His voice didn't tolerate any resistance. I stumbled over to him and watched from the safer distance how Jacob pushed Leah for a second time. With more force now that I wasn't standing in the way. She launched forward and pushed him back.

"How can you stand being with that leech lover?" She screamed at him as he pushed her another time. "I wonder when she starts reeking like them."

I tilted my head, took a strand of my hair and smelled on it. Jacob started laughing. But it was no amused laugh. "You're silly, Clearwater." His huge body was blocking the way not allowing her coming any closer at me or Billy.

I heard a car stopping in front of the house and froze. Jacob and Leah must have heard it too because they both stood still now but yet trembling, heavy breathing and trying to gain control. A car door slapped and then Charlie entered the house.

"Knock. Knock." He let himself in since the door was still open. He suspiciously eyed Leah and Jacob and watched their tensed demeanour. "Is everything alright with the two of you?" He asked and came over to me and Billy without giving them further attention. So he didn't see that another tremor rocked Leah and in response to that also Jake. What was up with Leah?

And then I finally truly realized.

She must be a werewolf too.

Leah watched me as I realized her secret and pulled her lips back as if to snarl at me. Suddenly everything happened really fast. Suddenly everything happened really fast now. Jake kicked Leah out of the house and I heard furious growls and then a sharp tearing sound. I held in to my breath as the growling and snapping increased and something big and heavy bumped at the wall. A feral snarl and then a squealing yelp followed and I flinched. Finally the noise edged away from the house and it became quite.

Charlie stood frozen stiff and listened.

„What the hell was that?" He ran back to the entrance and peeked out. "Jacob? Leah?"

Billy and I changed a silent look.

"Ah, we have some trouble with undomesticated dogs on our ground…" Billy said quickly reacting. "Leah and Jake were supposed to take care of that … ah … problem."

"Oh, I see." Charlie said.

My stomach heaved and cramped and I felt the need to throw up.

"Bella, no need to worry." Billy whispered to me. He seemed tense and annoyed but not afraid or scared. And so I trusted him that everything would work out alright. It only was essential that Charlie wouldn't get even more suspicious.

"You truly have an amazing kid, Charlie." Billy said aloud directed to my father. He smirked at me.

"So everything went fine?" Charlie hugged me and I nodded.

"Maybe you should get her home now, Charlie." Billy suggested. "I am a lot better and Jacob will be back any minute… so I won't be alone."

Charlie eyed Billy and Billy managed to move his fingers to reassure him to be fine.

"Wanna go, Bells?" He asked and I once more only nodded. I flitted into the bathroom and grabbed my bag. Then I wished Billy Good-bye and hurried to the car. I didn't care if Charlie wandered about my hurry. I just wanted to get him away from La Push before he would discover the Quileute secret.

The ride home would have been quietly normally but I was excited and still had the picture of furious Leah in my mind. So I talked my father's ear off. Charlie was tired from working all day. But nevertheless I finally was brave enough to ask him something.

"Dad?" I started and nervously twisted my fingers. "About my trip to mom…" Charlie took a quick glance at me.

"Go ahead, Bells."

"I just thought, … you know… Jacob … ahm." I stuttered.

"Spit it out, Bella!"

"Ahm… Jacob looked so bad. And he does so much for Billy." I pinched my nose and finally rushed: "Iguesshereallyneedsabreak."

"What? What are you talking about?" Billy looked slightly stressed. Maybe the timing wasn't so perfect. But I couldn't wait any longer. The date was set to Saturday which was only 2 days ahead. And if I wanted to take Jacob with me I had to cancel Edward's ticket and rebook one for him.

"You have to speak clearly and slowly, Bella." Dad said and it reminded me on the days when I was still a kid.

I sighed and braced myself.

"I still have this second ticket. I could give it to Jake…" I explained. Only seconds later Charlie's head went purple.

"No way, Bella! What are you thinking?" He shouted and gripped the wheel so tightly that his knuckles became white.

"Dad. No. I just want him to have a few days out."

A vein on this neck pulsed furiously.

"I don't let you travel with him. Reneé…"

I interrupted. "Mom would be fine. I already spoke to her."

"What?" Dad huffed. "You already asked her? You knew she wouldn't mind. It's always the same with her…"

I flinched and felt how angry tears appeared in my eyes. As much as I loved my father I sometimes despised his sense of responsibility and his overprotective manner.

"It's not like that, Dad." I whined. "It's just about hanging around, having fun. You know?" I wiped away the tears. "Jake is always with Billy, taking care of him. I bet he never left the state of Washington before."

Charlie scratched his chin.

"But Billy is in a bad condition right now. He needs Jacob around."

I knew he was right. But I also knew the ticket would expire in a few days and neither Jake nor I could afford to pay for a new ticket. It was the only chance I had to spend a few days together with him in Florida.

"I guess Billy wouldn't mind letting Jacob go with me. Apart from that he was much better when we left."

Charlie still shook his head. We arrived at our house and he stopped the car.

"If you think I would let two hormonal teenagers spend 3 days without parental charge, you're wrong…"

I laughed sarcastically. Mom would be around and Phil. We wouldn't be without adults. I huffed and replied: "Those two hormonal teenagers…" I made a quote sign with my fingers. "…are NOT – listen, Dad – not ready to do", again the quote sign. "hormone driven" I paused, "THINGS!"

Dad looked intensely out of the car window.

"AND" I pushed him further. I was desperate. I so badly wanted Jake to have fun for a few days without being responsible for his father. I so badly wanted him to be with me. "If we wished to do IT, Dad," I stared at him. "…we would find a way here in Forks or in La Push."

Dad winced. Then he slammed the car door open.

"I have to think."

He stomped into the house without looking back at me. I felt guilty that I had been so harsh with him. But otherwise I was old enough to make my own decisions. I couldn't understand why Charlie was so old-fashioned. Maybe it was because he hadn't me around for such a long time?

I followed him into the house and went up to my room. I opened my bag and took the book I had borrowed from Jake. But since I was so nervous I couldn't concentrate and turned the pages without reading them. After a while I heard dad stomping up the stairs. He knocked at my door and I asked him in. He still looked moody and also the colour of his face had still this alarming crimson colour.

"Bells, I guess you are right in some ways." He took a seat on my bed. His voice was strained and he was still talking through his teeth. "But I won't give you the permission without asking Billy."

I cautiously nodded. "When Billy says he still needs Jacob on this weekend you go alone."

"And," now he made a break and stared at me. "IF Jacob comes with you I ask you to not haste things. Take your time. Bella. It's a big step and it means too much. I really want you to be happy with your first time."

I gawked at him and he gently stroked my hair. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't get mad when it comes to Jake. I still have to get used to it that you're going to be a woman…"

With that he left my room and stormed in the living room to watch TV. I laid down on my bed a big smile spreading over my face. I knew Billy would Jake let go with me. I just trusted on that. And then I went over to my computer and switched it on. The next hour I spend with altering the second ticket for Jacob.

Later I snuggled on my bed, closed my eyes and reviewed my day. So much had happened in the last 24 hours. How would Jacob be right now? Would he be happy when I told him that he could be joining me to Florida? What was it with Leah? Why had she been so angry with me? I really hoped that neither of them got hurt over their fight. My heart started to race as I remembered how Leah had lunged at Jacob and how he had kicked her out of the house. Her beautiful face had been so twisted with pain. I cringed at the mere thought of it. Could Jacob tell me more about her?

_JPOV_

I was pissed off when I came back home. I jumped through my window after sneaking my way back to the house. Of course I had torn my clothes to tiniest pieces. There had been no time for stripping it off. Leah really had surprised me. She was so short-tempered these days. I couldn't stand it. I wasn't happy about my werewolf genes either. But how could she go mad at Bella? Bella had nothing to do with it. Sharing Leah's thoughts was no fun thing. We couldn't hide anything while being in our wolf form. She was hurt from what Sam had done to her. She still grieved over the death of her father. Harry Clearwater hadn't survived the shock seeing his daughter turning into a wolf. She suffered when my mind opened and she saw the pictures of me and Bella being together. I understood but not accepted why Leah so strongly hated Bella. She illogically associated her father's death with the Forks Vampires and Bella's affection for them. I myself also held the return of the Cold ones, as the old folks called them, responsible for our transformation. But I didn't blame Bella for that. That was stupid and silly.

Dad was already waiting for me when I opened my door.

"I'm sorry, dad." I choked out as I saw him. Obviously his muscles hurt again. But at least Charlie had laid him back on the sofa.

Although I hadn't been away for a long time I had worried he would be waiting for me in the corner where I had left him standing in his wheel chair. Remorse pulsed through me and anger against Leah. If she hadn't gone mad there would have been no need to leave Billy alone. I felt my hands twitching and forced myself to calm down.

Billy watched me and seemed to know what I was thinking.

"It's a hard time for Leah, too." He mentioned. "Don't blame her…" His eyes checked me up and lingered on a scratch on my neck that was still fresh pink but already healing and then he grinned. "She's a beast, huh?"

The scar on my neck went down to my throat were she had lunged at me when I had pushed her out of the house. And then there was the scratch that reached down my back. That was really a huge one. Stupid Leah with her girl's claws. But I had done some harm on her too, I couldn't spare her from that when I had defended myself from her attack. She fought different than Paul or the other guys. She used her girl power, she knew to aim a guy where it counts. I flinched at the memory. _Ouch_.

Billy let out a guffaw.

"Stop laughing at me!" I barked but then I had to laugh too.

"Yes, she is a beast but a skilled fighter."

Dad nodded and changed the theme.

"I'm hungry, Jacob. And you look as if you could need something in your stomach, too."

I helped him to sit in his wheelchair and pushed it into the kitchen. Then I warmed the leftovers from Bella's scrumptious rice salad and set the bowl on the table. While eating I recognized that Billy needed less help now. But I didn't say a word about it. We had our silent agreement to that.

After dinner I excused myself and went into the bathroom. I was dead tired again although I had been sleeping so long last night. I took another shower and brushed my teeth. I never knew how to move inside our tiny bathroom without hitting my arms or my shoulders on the walls. So I made small moves, kept my arms close to my body as I towelled my body. But even though I tried to be careful I pushed the razor from the sink and jumped aside as it tumbled down the floor. My head made contact with the wall behind and I heard Billy shouting:

"Leave my house standing, Jacob!"

I snorted as I picked up my razor and laid it back on the sink. One would imagine that a werewolf with a huge amount of fur should need to shave but instead my face was still hairless and the skin soft as a baby's butt.

I quickly cleaned the bathroom and a piece of fabric caught my attention. I picked it up. It was Bella's shirt. The blue one I remembered she had worn yesterday. I couldn't resist and brought it up to my nose. I deeply inhaled and her lovely scent flooded my brain. It reminded me on wildflowers, green grass and the little strawberries one could find in the forest. A longing ache settled in my stomach and rushed further down. I growled before I could hold on to myself and buried my nose deeper in her shirt.

I startled when our phone rang.

_You're a perv, Jacob Black _I thought and left the bathroom but still held on tight to her shirt. Meanwhile dad had answered the phone and talked in a hushed voice. A mischievous smile stole over his face and I got all curious.

"Naa, don't be silly." He said while he slowly flexed and clenched his aching free hand. "I have to thank you." His face was intense but in a positive way.

"I understand."

In the kitchen sink I discovered a broken bowl. It was likely that Bella had done this. Maybe she had dropped it when Leah entered our house. I collected the pieces and threw it in the trash while I still listened to my dad. I needed to talk to Bella and apologize about Leah.

"Hm." He murmured. "It's alright, yes." Another mischievous smile. What the heck was going on? I listened even more carefully but all I could hear was a male voice talking to dad.

"Yes, I won't. And tell her he's back and fine, will you?" Billy turned around and I knew that he knew I was eavesdropping.

"Bye. Yeah. Bye!" He broke the connection. His face was smug and smiling and the way he looked at me made me want to throttle him.

"Jacob Black," he laughed. "You will get rabbit ears if you keep on spying."

I stuck my tongue at him. On common days this would have implicated dad ramming this wheel chair into my heels and me returning this with giving him a push so he would roll over into the living room. Of course, today his hands and arms didn't possess the strength to move the wheels.

"Charlie asked if you managed to get rid of those wild dogs."

"What wild dogs?" I didn't understand what he was talking about.

"I had to tell him a story. I mean, he almost saw you and Leah ripping each other apart, huh?"

Right. I hadn't thought that far.

"Is Bella mad at me?" I asked warily.

"Why don't you go over and ask her?" He suggested still smiling. I shook my head.

"You need me here, dad. I will call her later…" I really didn't want to leave him alone again. But otherwise I longed to see her.

"Know what, Jake? You've done a lot for me the last days. You go see her. I'll get along, here…"

Now dad commanded me around, making sure he had everything he would maybe need when I wasn't there and then nearly forced me to get into my car.

_BPOV_

I jumped from my bed when I heard a car stopping at our slip road and rushed to the window. I saw Jacob winding his long body out of his rabbit. Actually this car was too small for him. He waved when he saw me standing at my window. I grabbed a sweatshirt and ran down the stairs.

"Where's the fire?" Charlie yelled after me. I yelled a "Jacob" back but I wasn't sure if he had heard it because I vigorously pushed the front door open which ended with a loud bang as it slammed at the wall.

"Jacob…" I called him and ran over to his car where he still stood waiting for me. He opened his arms and a big smile warmed his face when I threw myself at his chest.

"Seems someone is happy to see me…" Jacob whispered into my ear as he embraced me.

I rose on tiptoe to kiss him but because he was so tall he had to bend down, what he of course very eagerly did. Now I could reach his lips. I enjoyed the feeling of my lips meeting his.

"I" Jacob said and wanted to pull back. But I didn't let him go yet. We just started!

"came" he mumbled and his embrace tightened. My lips tenderly brushed over his and he sighed.

"to"

Kiss.

"apologize."

Kiss.

I threw my arms around his neck.

"Why?" I stopped kissing and stared at him. He looked so damned tired.

"Because of what Leah did… You see, she's…" He seemed to be confused. I looked into his eyes.

"What's up with Leah? Why was she so mad at me? I don't even know her."

Jake took my hand and led me to the porch. He sat down on the stairs and pulled me into his lap.

"Well, I knew her from school and sometimes we hang around with all the other kids. Once a month she came over with her parents and Seth and we had a funny time. She used to be very warm, friendly and caring, you know? I liked her a lot." I listened to him carefully. His voice was concerned and little bit sad. "Then she fell in love with Sam and talked about nothing else but him being the ONE and that she wanted to marry him. It turned out well for a while. She was happy. But then… Sam changed. He became unsettled, angry and moody." He deeply sighed and rubbed over his eyes. "Nobody knew what was up with him. Leah was so worried and afraid. When he phased for the first time nobody knew what had happened not even Sam himself. You know, I told you before. After his transformation he met Emily, Leah's cousin, and imprinted on her." I remembered. He had told me about that, too.

"Of course, Leah had no chance to win him back. Sam wasn't to tell her what had happened to him. He kept his distance from her which hurt her even more because she hoped they maybe could talk things out."

I felt so sorry for Leah. I knew too well how it felt to be left behind.

"Then one boy after the other started to get bigger and stranger and we all watched Sam taking leadership of them and the elders agreeing to that. We didn't know that it was already a forming wolf pack at that time."

The reverberation of our conversation when he told me about the 'cult' as he had called it was still present in my memories. Also how I was worried for him.

"We all were so focused on what had happened to us that nobody saw that Leah changed, too. She became lean but also taller and more muscular. And then there was the day, when Sam and Leah met on the grocery store and started to quarrel. When he left the store she ran after him fuming with rage. They kept on fighting and it ended up with Leah trembling and shaking all over. Sam realized just then what was going to happen and edged her from the street into the woods. This was where she phased for the first time and tried to rip him into pieces."

Did Jacob chuckle as he told me about Sam and Leah fighting? I wasn't sure what the low rumble meant that vibrated through his body. I for myself thought that Sam deserved Leah's anger right.

"Well, it needed some time until Leah was amenable to let Sam help her phasing back. When she finally came home she learned that at the very same day Seth had transformed too."

I gasped. "Seth, too? Oh, no!"

Jake laughed for a short moment.

"Ah, Seth, he can live with it. He thinks it's cool." He took my hand and kissed my palm. Then he continued:

"Leah broke down and told her parents about herself. This night Harry Clearwater died from a heart attack."

I interrupted Jacob.

"And now she blames herself over the death of her father?" I asked. Jake shook his head.

"Hm, not at all… Leah hates herself for being what she is. But she even more hates the cold ones because their presence triggered the transformation and took away everything what she had. Sam. Her father. Her life as a normal human girl…"

I laid my head back so I could see him in the eyes.

"And she hates me because I was with Edward and his family…" I concluded and he nodded. A chill ran down my spine.

"But you have nothing to do with it. She may not blame you…" He hissed angrily.

"Really, Jake. I can understand her."

"I understand her, too. But I won't allow her to go mad at you."

"I feel so sorry for her."

"Of course you do. You feel sorry for everyone…" Jacob frowned. For a moment I was stunned. I wasn't used to him being snappy at me.

"That's how I am…" I finally could answer. I pulled out of his arms and stood up. When Leah hated me because once being friends with the Cullens, what did the other werewolves think about me? Did they hate me, too?

"Sorry, Bells." I startled when I heard his voice right behind me. I hadn't recognized that he had followed me. And I hadn't recognized that I had been walking straight into the woods and I now stood where months ago Edward had left me…

I turned around in an instant and stalked back to the house.

"Bella!" A strong hand curled around my upper arm and made me stop. "Don't be mad at me, please…"

"It's just that I don't like this place. It scares me…" I explained and it was the utter truth. I felt my heart pumping with force and my breath sped up. Jacob reacted at once. He lifted me up and carried me back to his car.

"Don't be afraid, Bells. I'm here. I'm with you…"

He brought me back to my feet but held me tight to his chest. My heart was still pounding quickly but now not because of my fear.

Then he was talking again. "The worst is she can't escape the pictures… While we are in our wolf form she sees everything what is in Sam's mind."

I embraced him. "You do like her a lot, don't you?"

Jacob sighed. "Well, yeah… I guess I do. And I really hate she is suffering like that. She doesn't deserve that."

"I know."

He kissed the top of my head and buried his face in my hair. I shuddered as I felt his breath blowing over it.

"Jake?" I looked up at him again and took his hand. "I will spend a few days with my mom in Florida."

He looked quite a bit disappointed but I knew he would cheer up soon after I had told him about my plans.

"I've got a surprise for you. Come, follow me…" I dragged him along with me and into the house. I ignored Charlie's condemned staring and led Jacob into my room.

_JPOV_

She would leave for Florida? Why hadn't she told me that yet? I shouldn't be disappointed. Bella so seldom saw her mom. But still, I was. I tried to hide it and felt how my previous grumpiness crept up again.

Bella snatched my hand and pulled me with her into her room. What had she said? She wanted to show me something? What could that be?

She closed the door and leaned on it. When she smirked at me my heart started to race. She looked so damn sexy with that adorable smile on her face. I really liked that she came out with her feelings for me more openly. I brushed a strand of her brown hair out of her face and my hand lingered for a moment on her neck. She shivered when my fingers curved around her shoulder. Bella reached out and laid her hand on my waist and with a gentle pressure of this hand she invited me to step closer. I wouldn't have needed an invitation. To be close to Bella seemed to be a dire necessity nowadays.

The volume of the TV in the living room was turned down.

"Your dad is listening to what we might be doing in here…" I whispered into her ear. A tremor rippled through my hands which made me wonder why I was so unsettled today. Once more I got angry that he didn't trust me. But on the other hand – and now a mischievous smile stole over my face - the brat in me just wanted to tease Charlie a bit.

To my surprise Bella seemed to think the same because she cunningly smiled and answered: "Wonder what he expects to hear…"

I couldn't suppress my shrieking laughter when I suddenly felt her fingers poking in my rips.

"Stop that, I'm ticklish…" I yelled out and squirmed and writhed when she took her second hand to tickle me even more. I fell to the floor still laughing, dragged her with me but her tickling fingers made me helpless.

"Mercy…" I panted after a while and gasped for air between my laughter's. Her fingers came to a hold and rested on my chest.

"Surrender?" she asked. We both knew the atmosphere between us changed from kidding to electrifying.

"I give up." I let my body go limp and only then I realized that my muscles were stiff from that constant aching that never left throughout this day. I sighed without noticing it.

"What is it, Jake?" Bella wanted to know. She was so observant I shouldn't underestimate that.

"Ahh, nothing, actually,… I feel a little sore."

"You had some hard days…" She murmured and her fingers traced patterns on my chest. "You need a break…" She looked up at me through her thick black lashes. I knew she wanted to say more but the way she looked at me fed my desire to kiss her. I grabbed her arms and pulled her over me.

"You know, you could just kiss the pain away…" I said in a low and husky voice.

"I could do that. You're absolutely right." Bella answered and her breath flowed over my lips. Her mouth lingered over mine teasing me until I couldn't wait for her kiss any longer. I leaned forward and captured her. She gave in with a smile on her face and kissed me back with fervour. Bella's hands ran over my chest and explored my shoulders and my arms. The sensation of her hands on my body was just overwhelming and I wanted nothing more than to explore her too. My hands closed around her small waist where I found her bare skin. She was so soft and warm and the more I kissed her the more her scent surrounded me. My nostrils flared as I deeply inhaled her smell but then my muscles locked and I stopped kissing Bella. On her I could smell that piercing stench of that vampire. It was not fresh but nevertheless distracting and much more present than it usually was. It annoyed me that his scent was still prominent in her room and now even lingered on her. What had she done that she could smell like that?

This time Bella didn't recognize that something was wrong with me. Her hands had a grip on my shoulders and she pulled me closer. I shouldn't let me bother by a scent. It was me who was with her now, right? I turned back to my further activities and let my lips wander over her face behind her ear and to her neck. There I blew my breath into her hair until I could only smell me there. I growled satisfied and nibbled on that spot behind her ear.

"Jake!" Bella snapped for air and made a very sexy squeaking sound that raced through me right into the lower part of my body. I had made her react like that? This encouraged me to repeat that little bite and once more she moaned and quietly squeaked. O God. If I could do that to her with only a little biting how would it be when we progressed? I wanted to tell her how I desired her. I opened my mouth to speak but stopped, my brain not allowing me to form words. Her hands slipped under the hem of my shirt and stroked over my stomach and up to my chest. My body temperature skyrocketed and for a moment I lost my skill to breathe.

_BPOV_

I was overwhelmed by the sensation of his smooth but firm skin under my hands. His hard and well-structured six-pack twitched as I moved my hand over his stomach. Jake's temperature rose and I started sweating as I lay there half on top of him. Jacob still kissed and nibbled on my neck, his hands wandered slowly from my waist up to my ribcage leaving trails of heat and there were strange little sounds filling my room until I knew that I heard myself. And I also could hear the soft pants and moans against my neck that were coming from Jacob.

His lips found its way back to my mouth and soon his tongue feverishly begged for entrance. I parted my lips to let him in and moaned over the sensation of him entering my mouth. Without even thinking I moved my hands higher and shoved his shirt up. That clearly spurred him on because his kisses became more urgent now, something hard pressed into my stomach and low husky growls of pleasure rolled off his throat as he moved under me. Did he just growl? Had I made him growl? My hands clenched the fabric of his shirt and I just wanted to pull me closer into him.

"Bella…" He rasped between kisses and I felt his thumbs slipping under the hem of my bra. My breath hitched and I arched into his touch instantly wanting more.

Suddenly there was a hard push at my door and I jumped. Another push and we fell apart. Was that a vacuum cleaner howling in the floor?

I groaned frustrated and pulled back: "I will die a virgin."

"Not if I can help it…" Jacob smirked and slightly squeezed my thigh.

"Stop it, Jake!" I hissed pulling us both into a sitting position.

"I'm coming in now, Bells…" I heard Charlie yelling over the noise. The door swung open and he stepped in feigning busy.

"Come on, kids, I have work to do!" Charlie pushed the machine over the floor of my room.

"Dad?!" I screamed and rose to my feet. "It's past 9 p.m. and you never ever vacuumed the house before. What are you doing?"

Charlie smiled like an imbecile, whistled and went on cleaning while Jacob sat stunned and with narrowed eyes glaring at him.

"Get out, Dad!" I yelled furiously and tried to shove him out of my room. He pushed the vacuum cleaner a few more times over the floor for appearance's sake and then left. I slammed the door behind him furiously as I was. I swear I could hear him sneaker on the other side of the door and smacked my flat hand against the wood.

"Arggh!" I gritted my teeth and clenched my hands. Jacob was standing now with a bewildered look upon his face and reached out to hold me.

"Don't touch me!" I snarled and frustrated sat down on my bed. I was so angry at Charlie, all the blood rushing through me I felt like an overheated pressure cooker.

"Bells, calm down. You look like you're going to explode any second…"

His voice was serene but nevertheless his facial expressions couldn't hide his real feelings. I knew that he was tired of being distrusted by my father so I wasn't surprised seeing him glaring out of my window. His eyes seemed to be burning, his eyebrows were pulled together and a steep fold cut deep into his forehead. He reminded me on the day when I first met him after his transformation. I couldn't stand to see the darkness creeping over his face mixing up with pain and frustration. His brooding brought me down from my rage and I went over to take him into my arms.

"Don't, Jake. Charlie will get used to us. He already agreed to you coming with me to Florida."

Jacob huffed. "Get used to… As if I was a disease, 'to get used to'…"

"No, Jake. That's not what I meant." I tried to pull him to my bed. I wanted us to sit down. I wanted him to show the airplane tickets since he didn't realize what I had said to him before. But he just kept standing and didn't move an inch. "It's not because of you, actually."

Jacob shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. I walked around and now stood right in front of him, intensely staring into his face and forcing him so to look at me.

"He is afraid that we're having sex and I wouldn't enjoy it." Jakes mouth fell open and he came to the wrong conclusion.

"He implies that I force you into something you wouldn't like to do?" A strong twitch rocked his back and he deeply inhaled to stay calm. Oh God, would he never understand?

"Jacob, Charlie doesn't trust ME. He's afraid that I'm giving myself away too fast because I like it too much..." I could only whisper now. Reality struck me. As I said those words I knew that was exactly what Charlie wanted to tell me this afternoon in the car. I was embarrassed but at the same time I was not. Was it not only natural to feel attracted to someone you loved? Jacob's features softened now but there was still a frown on his face.

"Come on, you thickheaded boy, stop grumbling." When I placed my flat hands on his chest I now could shove him to my bed and he sat down.

_JPOV _

My werewolf instincts battled for dominance over my turned on teenage mind. I struggled to find myself again and not to give in to either of them. I just wanted to be Jacob not being ruled by my hormones or my instincts. I still was aroused despite Charlie's poor attempt to disturb us and frightened over the intermezzo with my aggression which had been pretty strong and made me scared of myself for a moment. Bella closed the distance between us and tried to pull me over to her bed. I wasn't to go down with her on her bed. I couldn't guarantee that I could stop myself from touching her again. I knew that she liked to be with me, actually loved to do what we did but with her father around that probably wasn't a very good idea. I still was annoyed over what Bella had said of 'getting used to us'. She tried to explain but I misunderstood her completely and a new wave of anger rolled over me.

"He implies that I force you into something you wouldn't like to do?" I felt my muscles contracting and forced myself to stay calm. Why should I do that? What did he think of me?

Bella blushed and whispered: "Jacob, Charlie doesn't trust ME. He's afraid that I'm giving myself away too fast because I like it too much..." She slightly squeezed my hand and laid her palms on my chest. She surely must feel my frantically beating heart.

"Come on, you thickheaded boy, stop grumbling." Bella shoved me to her bed and when I felt the wooden frame on my calves I sat down and waited for the things that were come to happen. But nothing happened except Bella sitting down next to me. She smiled warm and loving and I melted away like chocolate in the sun.

"Charlie doesn't need to protect you from yourself," I said drowning in her deep brown eyes. "You can take care of the things all by your own…" Slowly my mind started working again in a way I could accept. Bella smirked.

"I'm glad you trust my sanity."

I chuckled and leaned over to smack a hearty kiss on her lips.

"It wouldn't be my misfortune if you loved to have sex with me so much that you give in…" I grinned and placed another kiss on her lips.

"Jake, you're just unbelievable!" She squeaked laughing. "You're thinking with the lower part of your body as all boys do. But you didn't recognize what I said to you before…"

Our fingers intertwined. "Then maybe you would like to repeat what you told me? But since all of my brain cells are not in my head right now, you should speak slowly…"

She grinned at me, nodded and then accentuated each spoken word with care. "I said: You can come to Florida with me."

I couldn't hinder the huge smile to spread upon my face. She wanted me to be with her? In Florida? With her mother and Phil?

"Bella!" I cried out. "That's awesome! When?"

"I booked the flight for Saturday morning…" Bella's face was beaming with joy.

"I would love to come with you. But how can you, I mean… the ticket?" Rational Jacob in me knew neither she and Charlie nor Renee could effort to buy a ticket for me.

"Don't worry about that… see!"

She leaned over her bed and reached forward to grab a piece of paper that was hidden under her pillow at the very end of her bed. Her shirt moved when she stretched her arm and bared the soft skin of her waist. It was a delicate view to see the curves of her backside. I loved how her small waist was going over in well curved hips and her lusciously rounded butt.

I lost my just gathered mind again. But she absolutely turned me on and I so wished to go on top of her. Slowly, I didn't want to scare her, I lowered my body on hers pressing her slightly into her bed. And then I heard how Bella's breathe hitched and her heart skipped a beat. God, I loved to be with her like this. She didn't push against me so I knew she enjoyed herself the same as I did.

"Like this?" I asked nevertheless. My voice cracked. It was heaven. When she nodded, I gently I pulled her hair away from her neck and placed soft kisses there. She moaned and clenched her free hand into the bed sheet. But then I tensed as a weak but still piercing smell hit my olfactory nerves.

"Bella!" I hissed. "What is that? I'm smelling vampire all over here…"

"Really?" Bella wriggled to get free and I rolled off of her. She waved that paper in front of her face and sniffed on it. A new wave of vampire stench hit me and made me quiver.

"What's in it?" I demanded to know. My voice was hard and angry and I felt a hostility raising that was set due to my werewolf nature.

"Just the tickets." She whispered and her face fell. I saw her hands were trembling and felt sorry at the same moment.

"Show me, Bells…" I tried to soften my voice. I needed to know where that reek came from. When she opened the envelope the smell got stronger though I didn't understand why. Bella lifted the paper to her nose and again sniffed on it.

"I can't smell a thing, Jacob." She shook her head and bit down on her lip.

"Werewolf, remember?" I growled. The more I was exposed to that disgusting odour the more my instincts took over. My body responded to the stench of its natural enemy. Every muscle, every sinew was vibrating and I desperately fought back the urge to convulse and phase. "Put it away, Bella. Hurry!" I pressed through my teeth. Bella rushed to follow my order and hid the envelope back under her pillow. I went to the window and pushed it open. The fresh air streamed into the room mixing with the lingering vampire scent and made it more bearable.

Bella stared at me with huge and scared off eyes.

"I'm so sorry, Bells. I didn't want to frighten you… I don't know what has gotten into me." I apologized. "You have to tell me. Where does this scent come from?"

She dropped her head and whispered so low that even I could barely hear her: "It's the tickets. It was a gift for my birthday. From Esme and Carlisle."

"They gave you airplane tickets? For you…" I shook my head and narrowed my eyes into slits. "and ME?" I tried hard to understand the logic but I failed.

"No. Not for me and you." She stopped and run her hands through her hair. "For me and Edward…"

"You're kidding me, Bella." I snarled again and all of my hair stood on end.

"I asked the airline to change the booking." She explained nervously nibbling on her lower lip. "I wanted to have you with me…"

"I really appreciate your efforts, but I don't go on their costs…" Acid trenched my voice. Despite my body's temperature I felt cold. Bella had placed my name on this ticket. Wasn't that what I wanted? Erase him? Shouldn't I just take my chance and go with her?

She flinched and I knew she was almost crying but fought it back. "They won't even know, Jake…"

"I know!" Hell, yes, I knew and it felt so wrong. I felt wrong. I didn't want her to cry because of me. A lump formed in my throat and my stomach twisted. Bella turned her back on me. "You have to understand, Bells. They're my enemies. I just can't accept they paid for a ticket that's now meant for me." I tried to soften my voice but still I heard hate lingering in it.

"It's my gift. I can do whatever I want with it. And I want you to come with me…" Bella repeated stubbornly. I wrapped my arms around her but she backed away in an instant.

"Wooha, Jake! You're hot!"

When she touched my skin her hands felt icecold and I was burning up. Maybe I was running a fever? Maybe I had caught a cold? That would explain the soreness in my limbs. But since my body temperature was much higher then a human's I doubted that any viruses could survive in my system. Still it wasn't my usual temperature, I had to admit.

Bella watched me observingly, making me itchy with her staring.

"What?" I huffed finally when I couldn't hold out anymore. Why didn't she say a thing?

"You look the same as months ago when you got sick after cinema…" My eyes flipped wide.

"No." I mumbled rubbing my aching arms. "Can't be, Bells…"

Bella didn't stop staring at me. "I don't know what it is with you today, but you're acting weird. Maybe we should talk about everything tomorrow and you go and catch some sleep."

The more she talked me into it the stranger I felt. And in some way she seemed to be right. I really felt like months ago. Unstable, angry, sore and just s t r a n g e .

"You kick me out?" I asked, even my voice felt sore. Okay, maybe I had the flu.

"Silly." She leaned into me ignoring my burning skin. "I don't kick you out. But I think it would be better you go home now."

_BPOV_

I worried for him and I wanted him to be home before he crashed here in our house. I thought Charlie wouldn't be too pleased about this. I heard him still rumouring in his room.

"I don't know what it is with you today, but you're acting weird. Maybe we should talk about everything tomorrow and you go and catch some sleep." Sleeping would definitely help to get at least the shadows from his face. Jacob frowned and his face darkened.

"You kick me out?" He asked with an unsure edge in his voice.

"Silly." I leaned into him. It felt still good even though he was radiating heat. "I don't kick you out." I reassured him when recognizing that he was so tense. "But I think it would be better you go home now."

"Ok, if you say so." Jacob said cautiously. I thought he would just quickly kiss goodbye and leave but instead he suddenly was all over me again. His hands seemed to be everywhere while he was feverishly kissing my lips, my throat and my neck. My head fell back and I heard myself moaning in a deep guttural way. I grabbed his face with both of my heads and held him in place as his tongue snaked his way down following the line of my v-neck shirt. THAT was not the boy Jacob acting, this was a full grown man knowing what to do. I suddenly felt afraid though my head was dizzy and my body responded to him in a very needy way.

"Wait, Jake." I begged and tried to hold his head away from me. He stopped, laying his forehead in the hollow of my neck.

"I really should go now." Jake said huskily. His voice vibrated against my collarbone and chased shivers down my spine. I had to close my eyes for the shortest moment.

"We talk tomorrow…" I murmured, pressing his head to my neck. A thin layer of sweat covered his skin. "Think about it, Jake. I want you with me…"

He nodded and slowly regained control over himself again. When he faced me my breath hitched. His eyes were smouldering and heavy with lust.

"If you don't come with me, I won't fly…" I said. He stared at me and slowly shook his head.

"Of course will you go. You didn't saw your mom and Phil in months." He whispered insistently. But I only stubbornly pressed my lips into a small line.

"They are your family. You need to go. It's only a few days though!"

I don't know what came over me but I talked before I could blink my eyes:

"Think of all the things we could do in Florida."

Jakes head rocked up and he grabbed my shoulders to steady himself.

"Bella." He gasped. "Are you trying to win me over?"

"No." I answered but my face obviously spoke volumes.

"You are."

"No." I giggled and that eased the tension between us. Jake let loose of me. "Imagine, Jake, lying on the beach all day long."

"I have a beach right in front of my own doorstep." He huffed but I didn't give in.

"Sun all day, warm and bright. No rain."

"Don't need warmth. I'm all warm enough by myself…"

"Jake." I pleaded and looked at him with puppy eyes. "Please…"

"That doesn't work with me." Jake said.

I tilted my head giving him another puppy eyed look. He threw his hands in the air and let them fall again. "Fine. I will think over it."

I cheered.

"I said, I will think over it. I didn't agree to come with you, yet…" He responded but with a grin on his face. He reached for the door knob and I saw that his hand was trembling again. He followed my eyes and his grin faded at once.

"I'm gonna go now. I'm feeling stranger any minute…" Jacob turned his back on me. I didn't say a word about his sweat covered shirt as he slipped through the door. I followed him to his car after he had said his good-bye to my dad. Jacob quickly stepped into his car.

"Will you call me tomorrow?" I asked him. "I will be working at Newton's the whole day. I don't know if I can come over after. You know, there's some stuff I have to pack." I blinked at him. He just nodded, deep in his thoughts. We parted without saying another word. He just waved his hand and then pulled out of our driveway. I waited and watched until I couldn't see the backlights of his car anymore and then turned and went inside.

Ignoring Charlie I grabbed the phone and took it with me up into my room. There I dialled Billy's number and after the second ring he answered the phone.

"Black."

"Billy, this is Bella." I rushed to say. "Jacob just left here and he's acting strange." I said.

There was silence on the other side of the line.

"Strange?" Billy finally asked.

"Yes. I don't know, Billy. But he so reminds me on the evening when he got sick after the cinema." My heart pounded against my chest. "He's so fidgety and easily to aggravate…"

Billy's voice was wary and hesitant. "You're speaking of a young werewolf, Bella."

"I know, Billy, but still. He's not himself. Maybe he just gets the flu or something. He told me his muscles were aching the whole day and his body temperature is even hotter then ever."

"Okay, Bella. I'll keep that in mind."

I just hoped that I would know soon what was up with Jake and that he wouldn't get serious ill now. I wanted him to be with me in Florida.

"Billy?" I asked. "Are you feeling better?"

"Ah, yes. Actually I'm going to be fine…" I was sure he was smiling now. "Is there anything else I can do for you?"

I drummed my fingers on the headboard of my bed, eyeing the envelope that was only half covered with my pillow.

"You could talk some sense into Jake. He refuses to come with me to Florida because of the tickets…" I complained.

Billy made some indefinable muffled sound.

"You should leave this decision to him, girl." Okay, so Charlie had talked about where the tickets came from and he already knew. "But I can talk to him, though…"

"Thanks, Billy. Jake would love it in Florida… no matter where the tickets come from."

"You're welcome, Bella. Good night!" He broke the connection and I sat there for a moment staring at the phone.

Minutes later I pulled the envelope from under my pillow and sniffed on it again. I still couldn't smell anything. Frustrated I threw it on my nightstand and went into the bathroom to get ready for the night.

**************  
**  
A/N: Your reviews are highly wanted. LOL**


	11. Alpha Orders

_**Alpha Orders  
**_

_JPOV_

I started the ignition and pushed the accelerator until my car howled in protest. I watched Bella getting smaller as she stood waving at me until I only caught a glimpse of her through my rear-view mirror. When I was around the first corner I hit the brakes, turned the car off and rested my head on the wheel. My hands were trembling and there was Bella's scent all over me. It was good she had sent me away because I honestly couldn't have stopped kissing and touching her. And as heaven as it felt being with her I knew neither me nor her were really ready for intensifying our relationship that way.

There were still too many questions not answered and too many memories standing in the way. But my body spoke a different language and I still was aroused, achy and needy for her and I really had to calm down before I was to go home. I tricked my oneway driven brain by doing some arithmetic expressions I remembered from Bella's calculus book. I wasn't a dumb brain I just hated school and being forced into going there. I would never tell anybody that I could have easily solved Bella's homework, when she was still a senior.

Who would guess but thinking about school and mathematics finally relaxed me so that I was able to drive home. Nevertheless the heat still burned in my system. I didn't know that my body could stand such a high temperature without ending up in flames. My rabbit seemed to get smaller with every minute that passed while the aching in my bones and muscles got stronger and stronger. I clenched my fists around the wheel and concentrated to head straight forward to La Push. When finally arriving my house I saw the shadow of Sam in his wolf form running patrol but ignored him completely. This wasn't my job today. There was still light shining through the windows which meant dad was waiting for me. His keen eyes paced over me as I stepped inside our living room and he slightly shook his head.

"Jacob, you look terrible."

"I've heard that before…" I huffed and shrugged my shoulders. I grabbed a box of orange juice out of the fridge and poured it down in one big gulp.

"So, how was your time with Bella?" Dad asked nothing but sereneness in his voice. As usual there was no filter between my thoughts and my mouth and so I talked out what occurred first.

"Charlie came in and vacuumed Bella's room."

"Did he?" Dad smirked. "I thought that Bella occupied that housekeeping stuff?"

I crossed my arms in front of my chest and grimacing at him.

"You know, being father of two daughters, I kind of know what goes on in Charlie. I've been through this two times." Dad said very openly.

"Ah, dad." I shook my head.

"Jake, when you have your own kids you will know."

"Stop that, that's … ugh." I rolled my eyes.

My stomach begged for attention and I turned around again to rob the fridge. I really needed to go for groceries. There was only bread and cheese left and an old wilted lettuce. But, hey, there were still some of those heavenly brownies waiting for me in a plastic box. I munched them down but stopped when I recognized Dad still suspiciously glaring at me.

"What's up?" I snapped and shut the fridge door.

"Bella called before." Dad said, wheeled next to me reached out and touched my arm. Would he start telling me too now I had to be sick?

"She said she worried about you."

Dad didn't explain further about what Bella was worrying only his silent watching me made me itchy. I frowned and impatiently tapped my foot on the ground.

"Look, Dad." I finally gave in and talked to him. "I just feel sick. I don't know why Bella means to call you about that."

"She didn't name it correctly but how I understood her she is reminded on the day before you started to turn and phase first."

"Argh. And? I've already gone through the transformation. I don't know what you are implying. Is there anything you haven't told me yet?" Not that I was really interested in crappy stories but it would be good to know if there was a reason behind my awful condition.

"I've told you everything that was passed on me. But I have to give Bella some credit. You really look the days of your transformation." I recognized Dad's voice being thick with sorrow. It was obvious that he was frustrated that he didn't know what was going on.

I rubbed my aching head until I turned around and stalked into my room. I had to leave before I got upset and would phase in the house. I really was on the edge.

"I still could just have the flu. Or better…" I hissed back at him through my clenched teeth. "… I could just transform back into being a mere mortal." _Yeah! Today I could beat Leah's bitchiness!_

I shut the door to my room with a loud bang and fell on my bed glaring at the ceiling. I knew by myself something was going on with me. I didn't help me a lot that Bella and Dad threw their concern into my face and even talked about me behind my back. As I closed my eyes and deeply inhaled to calm me down I could still smell Bella's scent. It was surrounding me like a cocoon, way crazy and a big turn-on, but although there was that piercing leech scent lingering on me and even when it had to be only nano particles, I smelled it thanks to my wolfish olfactory senses. Ugh. Disgusting. I shook my head to stop the lethal thoughts that quickly entered my mind.

I stretched my arms out and flexed and unflexed my hands. I watched the muscles balling up and relaxing again and noticed the tiny tremors rocking over my skin. Totally unnerved I rolled my eyes and crushed my arms back to the mattress. Restless I tossed around in my bed desperately wanting to get some sleep. But it was too hot in my room, my body too sore, my mind too fixed on the memory of kissing Bella and her suggesting me to come with her to Florida using Edwards ticket. _Ah, damn, I had to make a decision whether or not going with her. _

Only minutes later I was up on my feet again. I needed to get into the shower. There was no way enduring the vampire scent on me and getting some sleep. I adjusted the water to cold, stripped out of my clothes and stepped under the stream. I flinched as the water made contact with my meanwhile oversensitive skin washing away rivulets of sweat running over my back. But otherwise the icy water didn't do any good to my aching joints and muscles and I got out of the shower as soon as possible and changed into a pair of black underpants. Then I searched the cabinet for some Tylenol which I knew had to be there. I swallowed two tablets although I thought to use Dad's stronger painkillers but I didn't want to knock me out completely.

In case of something happened I needed to be in full control of my functions. I couldn't know if maybe Dad would need my help and also the pack still hadn't caught the female vampire that was after Bella. Not that we really expected her to come back, the track was old and faint but still one could never know and I had to be prepared. That was also the case that I had insisted that there was always one of us running patrol at Bella's, even when Sam meant the danger for Bella to be over. At least he had listened to my request.

Today it was Leah's turn to check out territory, she surely wasn't too pleased about watching over Bella especially after the incident this afternoon. I wickedly grinned at my reflection in the mirror as I thought that patrolling around Bella's house would be the right penalty for Leah's outburst.

Still snickering I scuffled from the bathroom and only then I heard Dad whispering to someone.

"Sam? What's going on?" I wondered walking over to the kitchen where both men were heavily discussing.

"Jake." Sam straightened up when I stopped in front of him. I noticed with a slight hint of satisfaction that I had nearly outgrown him. Sam quickly scanned me noticing my height, my tension, the stiffness of my movements and the even for our species unusual high body temperature I was running.

"Oh, come on. It's getting cross." I sneered at him as I became aware of his expectantly demeanour and wanted to leave them standing. But I stopped short in my tracks as Sam went on: "Your dad's been telling me that Bella reported him you're acting strange?"

"What?" I barked a laugh. "Sam, you're kidding me."

He added: "Billy is concerned too."

"Great, Dad." I huffed. "Just tell anybody Jakeyboy's getting down with a cold…" I pressed my feet into the ground with all my might to suppress any tremors that would probably boost their silly conjectures.

"Jacob, you gotta tell me what's going on." Sam tried to smooth out the tension but I cut him off.

"Mind your own business. Or am I in a fucking inquisition?" I hissed being sure my face must be coloured in a deep fiery red as furious as I was by now. No matter how hard I tried to stay relaxed my body was visibly shaking and the muscles clenching without my doing.

"Look, Jacob. I was told…"

I couldn't hold myself back. I slammed my flat hands onto our kitchen table. I needed a release for all my anger but it didn't help at all.

"I know what you were told. You don't have to repeat the facts all of us already know." My voice changed into a constant growling while I was staring at my dad.

"Bella invited you to Florida?" Sam asked now.

"What the heck… ?!" I glared at my dad like _Did she tell you too?_ and then cursed words I didn't use very often. Dad flinched and raised his eyebrows as if to rebuke me but stopped. I didn't know at whom I should be more furious – at Bella for calling my dad, at dad for telling Sam or at Sam for playing almighty Alpha shit.

"So what, Sam? Do you have any problems with that?" I spat at him hunching my shoulders. Sam reacted at once to my aggressive behaviour. He leaned forward staring into my eyes.

"Usually I wouldn't care a thing about what you do with your girlfriend." He growled back.

"So. And why do you so now?" I hissed in response feeling my blood boiling.

"As long as we don't know what is up with you, I want you to stay away from her."

For a moment I saw red. Only the thought of my father being only inches away from me stopped me from phasing and jumping at Sam.

"He's right, Jake!" Dad chimed in. I fell silent and for a moment we stood there trying to stare each other down. "You may not endanger Bella." He went on. "When you're so unstable you better not meet her. Remember what happened to Emily."

Sam shut his eyes close for a second. When he opened them again he locked his eyes with mine and I felt his Alpha command crushing down on me.

"You will stay in La Push until you feel better, Jacob. And you will tell her to stay away from you. Do you understand?" He ordered. I felt my jaw clench and something in me revolting. "It's only to keep Bella safe." He softened his voice. I really couldn't take all this crap seriously.

"This is so silly", I sneered exposing my teeth. _Oops, my slip. Never show your teeth to your Alpha. _"I'm quite fine in control of myself when I'm around Bella."

But Sam didn't react to my provocation. He just ignored it which made the thought of challenging him even more very attractive to me.

Sam leaned forward and repeated his order with much more Alpha timbre in his voice now. "Stay away from Bella!" Once more I felt his Alpha order forcing me to give in. I got even more angry and rebellious with every passing minute.

Dad cleared his throat to get our attention but it was effortless.

The phone rang and I snatched the receiver before Dad could lay his hands on it. A had an intuition who would be on the other side of the line. I pressed the green button and held the receiver to my ear.

"Hi." I spoke hiding my inner turmoil.

"Jake…" Bella's voice trembled slightly. "Are you fine?"

I rubbed my free hand over my eyes turning my back to Sam and Dad.

"Yeah, Bells. Everything's fine." I said and then looked over my shoulder making eye contact with my father. "Do you have any idea that you nearly caused a riot here because of your previous talk with my dad?" It sounded more harshly than I wanted.

"What?" Bella asked confused.

"Yes, there are some people trying to pamper me." My father shifted in his wheel chair and pointed out to my room indicating that he would be giving me privacy to talk. But I just stayed where I was following my provo path. I wouldn't let anyone dictate me anything about my relationship with Bella.

"Bells?" I asked her but facing Sam.

A low rustling was to hear on the other end of the line which strengthened my decision. I just knew she was holding the envelope in her hand, tossing it around. "Tell me again about the trip."

Sam narrowed his eyes and growled. "Jacob."

I glared back at him while listening to Bella who told me that we would leave Saturday early morning and the return flight was set for seven days later.

"Know what, Bella?"

Sam stopped breathing when he recognized the unruly tone in my voice. He closed the distance between us and straightened up as much as he could but there was no way he could tower over me. It was not even two inches that I was smaller then him. The vibrant snarling of my Alpha lashed on my will. From the corner of my eyes I saw how my father's eyes flipped between Sam and me. He seemed to be expectantly waiting for what I would do next.

"Bells, hold on a minute." I whispered into the phone and then covered the receiver with the palm of my hand. I knew I would disobey to an order of my Alpha. It was impossible for me to give in now. It was almost fun for me irritating Sam but I knew the consequences would be hard. Torn between standing and giving in, bowing under Sam's powerful will to force me into his order I managed to form a coherent thought: "She will not go unprotected. Still there could be the Vampire female waiting for her to finally get around us to kill her. And it's me who his going with her."

Surprised Sam took one step back and I using my chance quickly spoke into the phone: "Bella, see you Saturday morning. I'll be there on time."


	12. Countdown

_**Countdown to Florida**_

**BPOV ****Thursday, 11.00 pm**

First I thought that Jacob was angry with me when I called him. He seemed tense when he said: "Do you have any idea that you nearly caused a riot here because of your previous talk with my dad?"

But at once he eased the situation making a joke: "Yes, there's some people trying to pamper me."

But even though he cut our conversation short he sounded thrilled and almost hyper when he confirmed to accompany me to Florida. I'd heard muffled voices through the phone. The voices were strained, like fighting, but I only could make out that one of them belonged to Jacob. He pushed the red button wishing me nice dreams before I could ask him about it. But at least he seemed to be happy that I called through.

I got back the phone to the living room and told Charlie that Jacob would come with me. Of course, Charlie had made a face, but I still was so angry with him because of his latest activity to disturb Jake's and mine privacy and so I went into my room with the shortest "Good night" ever.

Tomorrow would be a long day for me with a lot of things to do. I had to work a full shift at Newton's and then to pack my stuff and to arrange everything for Charlie. I also had to check into Peninsula College for the schedule of the upcoming semester and to pay my tuition.

Eventually I snuggled into my pillows and drifted off to sleep thinking of Jake and all the things I planned to show him in Florida. Renee would be thrilled to see him in personal.

**JPOV Thursday, 11.30 pm**

Dad saved my ass!

That's what I really had to admit. As Sam left our house for controlling the borders and woods of La Push again, realization dripped through my aggravated brain and I felt the urge to run after him and apologize. But whatever was fighting in my system it made me damn tired. At least Thylenol was doing its job sparing me from the sore feeling but my body felt as heavy as a huge mountain and I barely could keep my eyes open.

After I had hung up the phone Sam had been literally fuming with rage, ready to kick my behind and I had been too ready to fight him back. We had been glaring at each other, my muscles were flexed and prepared to jump, Sam's face hovering inches from mine, his eyes boring into my eyes. I don't know what Dad had done to bring us down but it had been working perfectly. He just looked at us. I swear! He. just. looked. at. us. And I got calm at once and Sam, well, Sam stepped back, making room between us but then treated me as if my assault had been that of a harmless puppy. The stupidity of it made me laugh inside. I'm pretty sure that Dad had sensed my inner strife to prove Sam wrong. At this point he had sent me in my room barking it as command I followed at once. I nearly was glad about it and made a graceful exit. I was mentally and physically spent and not in the condition for another fight with anyone of them. And I knew I better kept my big mouth shut unless I wanted Sam to make me eat my own ass. A second time Dad wouldn't save me and he had would damn sure let Sam teach me a lesson.

There was still another thing bothering me. I had to travel on stinking vampire costs after I had confirmed Bella's invitation. But at least I would surely have some fun with Bella in Florida, and at any rate I would be leaving lots of my duties behind for a few days.

Even though I could find no comfortable position on my bed I now quickly dozed off, dreaming of Bella and being with her alone in Florida.

**BPOV Friday, 7.00 am**

I threw my clothes into my suitcase. There wasn't much I had to pack since I had left most of my summer clothes in Jacksonville. At 8.30am I had finished a quick breakfast and drove over to Newton's to work my shift. My truck was stuttering and doing strange noises. Back from Florida I needed Jake to check out on it.

Gladly there was enough to do at Newton's store with all those weekend hikers that needed things for their hiking equipment, so I hadn't had my head free to get excited at all.

I heard two hikers talking to Mrs. Newton that in the forests of Quinault a hiker was missing. I didn't pay to much attention because sometimes a hiker got lost and would appear a day or two later. It was so easy to get lost in those forests, I remembered with a shudder. Nevertheless I would tell Jacob what I had heard. He would want to know if he didn't know already.

**Billy POV, Friday 10.00 am**

I wheeled over to Old Ateara after I had ordered the council to gather. I had to tell them what had happened yesterday between Sam and my son. I needed to tell them about what I thought would be happening sooner or later. In spite of the fact that Jacob was still so young he reacted ever more aggressive on being leaded by Sam, what of cause was part of his true Alpha nature.

After he had phased for the very first time we had told him what and who he was, - we that meant Sam, me and the Elders -, but Jacob didn't accept being the Alpha of the pack. And as I had watched Sam and Jacob quarrelling yesterday I now was sure that Jake could no longer deny his true nature. And I was sure that Sam had been aware of that fact too which probably had been the only reason why Sam hadn't thrown any consequences on my son. Nevertheless, as long as Jacob positioned his rank under Sam, he needed to integrate into the pack and not to outstand and make his own thing. Jacob needed to learn that criticizing Sam would undermine Sam's position. And if Jacob still refused to lead the pack, more quarrelling could easily destroy the internal cohesion of the pack. He would have to learn a lot until the day he would take over as Alpha.

Sam probably would have tried to teach Jake some respect yesterday but the need to protect my son had been stronger so I had played out my cards. I possessed the power to control Sam for he was only the placeholder and I was a direct descendant of Ephraim Black our last true Alpha and therefore standing higher in command than Sam. What would be interesting to know, would I be able to control Jacob once he would be the Alpha?

**JPOV, Friday noon**

I awoke recovered and felt absolutely healthy. Dad wasn't at home, so I had some time on my own. First I managed the housekeeping, washing the dirty laundry, doing the dishes as well as cleaning my room and change Dad's bed sheets.

When everything was done I walked over to Clearwater's. I let myself in not bothering to knock. Leah was standing in the kitchen and in an astonishing good mood. She was even reporting me spontaneously about her patrol.

"No tracks, everything's clean." She told. "Your girly switched the lights off at 11.30 pm."

I shook my head and made a face. "You shouldn't control Bella but the area, Leah."

Leah grinned and blinked at me. Woha. Hadn't seen a smile on her face for, what, eons?

"I could listen to what she was talking in her sleep."

"Leah!" I answered running my hands through my hair. "Don't sneak into her dreams. It's not appropriate…" I blamed her.

I knew Bella was talking in her sleep. Having been around her house to keep her save I remembered that her dreams often enough scared or saddened her.

But Leah still grinned wickedly.

"I tell you…" She said and walked over to me. She tiptoed and whispered into my ears, imitating Bellas voice. "'Jake, oh Jake. Don't stop!'" She added a throaty sigh that made my stomach summersault. Leah punched my arm laughing loudly now. "Remember me to not let Seth do night patrol."

I stood there like an idiot. That sigh Leah made and only girls could do so sensual left me stunned for a moment.

"Argh. Jake. Get a grip on yourself." Leah teased me. But all of a sudden bitchy Leah was back. "I hope you know what you're doing." She stormed out of the house nearly running into Seth.

"Out of my way…" She hissed at her brother making him jump.

"What's up with her?" Seth asked.

The image of Bella, dreaming of me, and nasty Leah's whispering and sighing into my ear made me woozy.

"Donno." I mumbled and wished for a cold shower.

"She was runnin' around Bella's this night?" Seth looked up to me. He had grown a lot but still he was almost one head smaller than me.

"Yes, but why do you ask?"

"She hates having patrol there." Seth went to the fridge to find something to eat. He came out with a tremendous plate stuffed with delicious looking sandwiches.

"Hm, Mom loves me…" Seth said smiling hugely. "Hungry?"

He didn't need to ask me twice. With his mouth full Seth continued talking: "I once eavesdropped when Leah told Mom that listening to Bella crying in her sleep remembered her on her own misery."

My eyes grew big and I forced down the lump of food in my mouth suddenly feeling no hunger anymore.

Bravo. I thought. And now she knows Bella's dreaming of me and maybe, and with what Leah had teased me minutes ago I could hope, finally getting over the leech. And Leah would still be alone.

**BPOV Friday, 4 pm**

Sharp 4 o'clock I left the store to manage my college stuff. I tried to find my way through the college, looking for the bureaus and the blackboard. Then I met Angela at the blackboard and I learned that she would be studying the same study path.

"Do you know who else will stay here in Forks?" I wanted to know.

"Ah, I guess it's only Mike and Ben. But I don't know for sure."

She dragged me to the ice-cream parlour and forced me into eating a huge vanilla-strawberry sundae.

Soon we were having some girl talk about what we did since the day of our graduation. I freely could tell  
Angela about how things went out between me and Jake and that I would be spending a few days with him in Florida and she was honestly happy with me.

"He's good for you." Angela said. I knew what she thought but wouldn't say. How relieved she was that I was over Edward leaving me.

I quickly changed the theme and asked her about her twin siblings and her boyfriend Ben. After having talked for another thirty minutes I excused myself and headed home.

**Billy POV, Friday 5 pm **

I came home much later than I had wanted to. We ended up discussing that another hiker was missing - the second within seven days. It hadn't happened on our reservation but still it was close enough to be of matter for us. It meant that we would send over one or two of our wolf-boys to check what was happening there.

I shut the door and heard the noise from TV and a soft snoring. Jacob was soundly asleep. He must have crashed watching TV because he was spread all over our couch. I let him sleep. He needed his sleep now he was growing so much.

I already had done my own preparations asking Sue Clearwater if she was willing to help me when Jacob would be in Florida. No question about it anybody would help you here in our reservation.

Gladly the worst part of my latest exacerbation was over, I could do the most things on my own again. A new worsening I did not expect very soon.

I wanted Jake to go with Bella to Florida. I liked her to be with my son. Man, I remember the day when I found out that Charlie's girl was hanging around with a vampire. Sure, there was the old treaty that the Cold Ones wouldn't harm any humans in this area and as far as I knew they didn't even feed from humans, but still they were our natural enemies and I didn't trust them. And I for very sure didn't want a vampire dating with my best friends daughter. The day when Bella had been lost in the woods I was scared to death that we would find her drained and lifeless. Sam found her in a mental state that was beyond worse. The Cullen's had left that day and Bella, clinging on their "son" Edward fell nearly catatonic.

I sighed and heaved my body out from my wheelchair. I needed to walk a few steps after having been reliant on the chair for almost a week. Slowly and with heavy legs I started to prepare dinner.

Jake had a crush on Bella, since she moved back to Forks and I had seen him struggling with his emotions when Bella started to date another boy which he didn't know on that time yet, was a vampire. I had been so glad when Bella started to live up after spending weeks in a zombielike state and how much more I had been happy for Jacob as she chose to hang around with him and their friendship increased.

Jacob needed some normality after all those years he had done everything to help me. It hadn't been easy years for him after losing his mother too soon. He would have needed her longer as each child would. And then he had to watch my body getting weaker and weaker. And if it wasn't enough the Cullen's moved back a few months and triggered our genetic heritage that turned our kids into werewolves. Jacob needed some normality other teens had - at least for a week. He deserved to be happy.

**JPOV, Friday 9 pm**

I came back to my senses when my father touched my arm.

"Hey, sleepyhead. Dinner's ready."

Had I been sleeping again? Last thing I remembered was laughing at "The Simpsons". Man, actually I had wanted to pack my travelling bag and then spent some time with my dad before I would be gone for a while. Now I had to hurry because I would be doing the patrol around the Swan's home this night and then already meet her in the early morning hours for our trip to Florida.

The house smelled of pasta and tomato sauce. Dad had been cooking? Man, he shouldn't. But well, if he was cooking again he must be better a lot. I quickly checked on Dad who grinned over my puzzled face.

"Hungry?"

I nodded and followed Dad into the kitchen. We talked and laughed a lot during dinner but either one of us wanted to speak about my fight with Sam. Of course I was aware that Dad's keen eyes constantly lingered on me as if he was searching for something. But I didn't mention it.

"Sam and Paul are going to the Quinault reservation. There's a second hiker missing. The Quinault people asked for backing. I had a phone talk with their chief today." Dad reported.

I looked up from my plate.

"Did they tell if they already found the corpses?"

"They didn't find any. That's why they asked for help. They trust on the skills of our wolves."

"I see…" I only nodded. Paul and Sam would be telling us soon enough what was going on there. If there was a vampire roaming around, we would get rid of the problem pretty soon.

After dinner and watching the News on CNN with Dad I went to my room and packed my bag. It was quickly done, just throwing some shirts and pants into it.

Short before 10pm I dialled Bella's number just to hear her voice.

It was her answering the phone.

"Hi, Bells. Already sleeping?"

"Nope, actually I was reading in your book." I remembered that she had borrowed the Lord of the Rings book when she had watched over my father.

"It's not mine." My voice was suddenly thick. "It belonged to my mom."

"Oh, Jake. I didn't know. Do you want me to bring it back?"

"I want you to read it. It was one of her favourite books and it's mine as well…" I blinked away a stray tear that wanted to well from my eye.

"Are you okay?" Bella asked worried. She was so sensitive of course would she feel my distraction at once.

"Yeah, give me a moment. You just took me off-guard…" I answered huskily.

Bella was silent and I heard her walking around in her room.

"How's your fever?" She wanted to know seconds later.

"I'm fine. I slept for some hours and everything's back to normal. Can't wait for tomorrow."

"It's only 8 hours 'til then…" Bella must be smiling it made her voice soft like velvet.

"Jake?" Her voice changed again into worried. "I've heard about a hiker missing."

"Yeah, I already know. We will keep an eye on that."

She deeply inhaled. "Is it a vampire?" Fear lingered in her voice.

"I don't know yet, Bells. Sam and Paul are running over to Quinault tonight." I wanted her to feel safe. "We are checking the whole area around Forks and La Push. If anything comes near, we will know at once."

"'kay…" She still was concerned.

"Don't be afraid, Bells. It can have a natural reason." I said trying to assure her.

"Says the werewolf…" Bella grumbled which made me laugh.

"You're worrying to much. You have to trust us. We will protect this place. That's what we are made for."

"Hmpf."

"Relax, Bella."

"I'll do my very best. But I would feel better, if I knew the reason already."

I hated talking about things like that over the phone. I would better be with her and hold her. "I promise, Bella. As soon as I know ANYTHING I will tell you. And now, you better catch some sleep."

"You better, too." There, she was smiling again.

"See you at six. Sleep well, Bella."

**BPOV, Friday 11****.50 pm**

Shortly before I fell asleep I startled with my heart pounding in my chest. They would know that I had used the airplane ticket. The Cullens would know! Since I had altered the ticket to Jacob they would see the change on their credit card billing statements.

My heart was hammering so fast I thought it would jump right out of my throat. I was close to cry out in something between shock and terror. What had I done? I sat up in my bed trying to get a hold on myself. I forced my breath to an acceptable speed. It started raining outside, the wind swishing through the tree standing at the house and forcing the leaves of its one longest branch brushing over the glass of my window.

I tried to think rational. Why should _they_ want to know what I was doing? Why should they mind if I went to Florida and whether I was taking a boy with me. It was them who left, not me. And it was _HIM_ who told me that I wasn't good for him. I got really angry now causing fury tears running down my cheeks. I neither wanted to feel the hurt nor the feeling of being rejected and utterly and downright didn't want to feel hope that HE could want me back. If he had wanted to be with me he could have done so for the longest time. But after all this time there never came a phone call, email or written letter.

I really hated myself now wasting further thoughts and tears on him but still I couldn't fight away his picture appearing before my eyes and I couldn't fight back desperate sobs and tears.

_Get __finally over it, Swan._ I told myself.

_Get. over. _

_Get. over._

_Get._

_over._

_g._

_e._

_t._

_o._

_v._

_e._

_r._

Desperation made way for another picture. Mental sunlight pushed back twilight.

_You've got Jake now._

I wouldn't shed another tears. I would hold on with all my might to what I had now and what Jake was willing to give me.

_Jake._

**Edwards POV, over in Germany, Saturday, same time as Bella is lying in bed**

The last months I'd been avoiding anyone's thoughts successfully. But since Alice came back from her latest trip from Russia something was strange. She was hiding her thoughts from me. As well as Jasper and Carlisle. Why did I mind at all? I don't know but I felt uncomfortable as she was repeating a Tibetan chant all over and over again. I could easily overhear Jasper re-planning Siege of Vicksburg and Carlisle concentrating on a minimally invasive heart surgery. But I couldn't blend out Alice constantly humming her "Om Mani Padme Hum".

I always considered my vampire patience being endless but being exposed to that chant for over 48 hour non-stop made me more than curios. She definitely hid something important from me. Which meant it had something to do with Bella. Wince. But how could I get through that barrier? She must know I would come sneaking. Therefore we knew each other for too long. So I finally walked straight into her room where I found her furiously hitting the keys of her computer. I expected her to know that I was coming along but she jumped from her chair and chirped surprised: "Edward?!"

I smirked. "So, I finally could take you by surprise. A day to remember."

"So, I … ah, … was otherwise occupied." Not the slightest thought aside from the mantra escaped her brain.

"I wonder, what you hold back from me, Alice." I spoke directly into her face.

"If you think you could dazzle me, Edward, you're wrong." Alice said coolly.

"Dazzle you?" I raised my eyebrow and shook my head.

After being numb for so many weeks my dead heart started cramping dangerously. "I know you're hiding something from me. And I want you to tell me!" I demanded to know, feeling the familiar pain becoming alive again.

"Why should I tell you?" Alice turned around and left me standing. For the shortest second her mind opened and I saw her crying in Jaspers arms and wait, had there been venom glistening on her neck?

"What happened, Alice?" I followed her and grabbed her arm. Alice hissed and yanked her arm free.

"Listen, Edward." She yelled at me. "I'm pretty pissed off with you. So why don't you just leave me alone?!"

Another thought was flooding from her. Alice missing Bella like heck. Yeah, I miss her too. Then I understood, of course. Alice blamed me for the loss of her best friend. I let Alice go feeling wrecked up and guilty. As I wanted to leave her room to give myself over to brooding and moping again I recognized that she had left her screen running. I stepped closer to her desk. One step. And another one. Should I spy her out?

The next step brought me in front of her screen and I heard Alice frantically yelling: "Keep out, Edward!"

But I had already seen what she had tried to keep from me. Our post-box contained an email from the airline, informing us that a voucher was going to be used. I clicked open the attachment and learned that Bella was about to use the tickets Carlisle and Esme gave her to her birthday. And she had altered the ticket being meant for me to take Jacob Black with her. Like a sleepwalker I left Alice's room, walking out of the house, out of the garden, out of the town the hurt in me roaring to life like a dangerous beast.

_I wouldn't __allow any feelings._

_I__ would welcome the pain._

_I wouldn't get jealous._

_I wouldn't get_

_I wouldn't _

_I_

_I _

_ROOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAR!_

**JPOV, **

**Midnight until dawn**

I was running fast to Bella's house. The grass, the leaves and the grit under my paws were barely making a sound. It had started raining some time before but I didn't get wet. My fur was thick and didn't let the rain through to my skin. I reduced the radius of the circles I was running and came near as close as I could risk without being seen by Charlie. He wouldn't hesitate, a wolf on his property wouldn't have a long life. Not that he could seriously harm me with his gun, but I wasn't keen on some bullets in my ass. _Ugh._

Besides the rain everything was quiet in and around the house. I heard Charlie's snoring and Bella's uneven breathing. She was tossing and turning a lot and I wondered what she was dreaming about. Eventually her breathing slowed down to a normal level as she drifted off even deeper in her sleep. I stretched my fours and laid to the ground right in front of the door steps. I placed my muzzle on my fore legs and snorted the raindrops away that fell on my nose. I watched the forest through my half closed lids, listening to the nightly sounds.

I let my mind wander to the situation in Quinault while I still stayed on guard. If there really was a vampire roaming around it would be an easy thing for the creature to come to Forks. Before I would be leaving for Florida I needed to tell the boys that they had to keeping an eye on Charlie as well. But I didn't expect that a vampire would be running around for very long now that Sam and Paul would be taking care of the "problem". I snicker-snorted a wolfish laughter and run another circle around Bella's house.

Charlie was shifting in his sleep, mumbling words so low I couldn't understand. So Bella wasn't the only one talking at night? I looked up to her window. I just needed to phase and climb up the tree. Would she let me in? I could lie down beside her, slide a little closer, wrapping my arms around her. I could kiss her lips, inhale her lovely scent which would be rich from her sleep. I growled as my body temperature heated up over the pictures in my mind. I plopped my rear side to the ground and with my head held high up I watched the forest, the street and the sky. I wouldn't let myself get distracted. But as time dragged by my eyelids became heavier and I had to force them open ever often. A big yawn gave proof of my sleepiness and I snapped my teeth together loudly. I couldn't be tired again I had slept nearly the whole day long.

I stood up, shook the rain from my fur and circled the Swan's property once again. I listened if I could hear Sam or Paul in my head, but probably they were too far away to be heard or they weren't in their wolf form.

_Anyone?_ I called out in my silent voice and then I became aware of the slow tapping of other wolf paws.

_I'm here._It was Quil answering me. _Everything alright in La Push._

_Nothing unusual in Forks as well._ I reported back taking another round.

Eventually I lay down again in her doorway like a guard dog hiding in the shadow of its frame. I listened to the raindrops which were dripping from the gutter and watched them falling down on the stairs.

Drip.

Drip.

Drip.

A shrill shriek cut the silence and pierced my eardrums. I jumped to my wolf legs, wild growls and feral snarls erupting from my throat. My fur stood on end. Had I missed something? I hectically turned my head in all directions letting my eyes scan the area. My paws started to run but slipped away on the wet wooden patio making awful scratching noises. I panicked. What had happened? I run a full circle around the house, finding no evidence of an intruder. Still she was shrieking and gasping but it was more muffled now.

Lights went on and I heard Charlie open the door to her room: "Bella, you're dreaming. Wake up."

Finally my brain kept up with my instinctual reaction and I could stop my barking and growling. But it was already too late. I heard Charlie pushing the window open exactly when I crossed the space between the house and the woodside.

"Damn, what's that?" Charlie cursed and rumbled down the stairs grabbing his pistol from its holder. I took my heels and vanished into the woods.

_Idiot! Moron! Silly wolf!_ I yelled in my head while I hid behind the trees. _You're the stupidest wolf ever roamed the world._

_Jake? What's up?_ Quil's voice chimed in panicky himself. He must have heard Bella screaming over our mind link and clearly he was reacting to my shock as well.

_Nothing!_ I barked. _It was only a dream!_ I told him embarrassed. It was good I couldn't blush in my wolf form.

_God! Jake. You nearly gave me a heart attack!_ Quil snickered and then vanished again from my mind.

I watched Charlie slowly open the door and I knew he saw my tracks. But at least he didn't follow me. He went inside, talking to Bella who came down the stairs. The night faded away and I had to rush home so that I would be back at time.

While running I still felt the adrenaline rushing through my system. I grumbled and barked at myself for being so stupid to fell asleep on my watch. And then the fury came, boiling up my blood. Though being in my wolf form I started shaking at the thought of what the leech must had done to Bella. What had happened that she still was an emotional wreck months after he had left? Could a human mind ever heal once being exposed to things out of any natural explanations? Would she forever be broken? Would I ever be able to heal her? I growled and snapped uncontrolled needing an outlet to my rage.

The tremors became stronger and I dug my paws deep into the earth to stop the trembling. My vision got blurred as I crossed the borders to La Push and I literally saw red. I needed to stay in the woods. I couldn't get out as long as I wasn't in control of myself. Murder was in my mind! I felt the animalistic urge to tear that leech apart and to hide its every body parts just to see him struggle in pain the same Bella did.

A strong spasm rocked me and forced me to the ground. My legs were wobbling under me as I tried to phase back but I couldn't. And the more I tried the more the shaking increased. Then the shaking changed into hurting cramps, the ferocity and rage made way to sheer terror and angst and then I felt as if my skin would burst open and my mind went blank.

**BPOV, Saturday 5****am**

I couldn't remember my dream. I only felt the aftermath: trembling hands, sore throat and sweaty cold skin. And I saw the pale face of Charlie who was constantly muttering to himself about needing to keep the bears out of town while glaring at me as if expecting a new breakdown.

It was still raining, but I didn't give a damn about it. In a few hours I would walk under the sun of Florida. I took a shower and ate some cereals. When the clock finally showed 5.50am I took my travelling bag and put it next to the door. I slipped into my boots and dressed into my jacket. Nervously and excited I tapped my feet to the ground, tracing circles in our living room.

6.00am: Jake didn't show.

6.10am: No Jake.

6.15am: Still no Jake to be seen.

"Where's that boy? We've got a plane to catch…" Charlie grumbled impatiently.

I took the phone dialling the Black's number. Maybe he had overslept?

"Black." A still sleepy Billy answered the phone.

"Where's Jake? He should've been here fifteen minutes ago!" I was sharp before hysterics. We would miss the airplane!

"I haven't seen him yet." Billy answered and then I heard him yelling: "Jacob?!"

Given to his strained breathing I know that he was wheeling over to Jake's room. "Jacob?" He didn't get an answer.

"He's not in the house. I'm going to call one of the boys. Maybe he stayed at Quil or Embry overnight." Billy seemed to be confused.

Charlie took the phone out of my hand. "Billy?" He rumbled into the receiver. "We're already going to Port Angeles. Jake needs to meet us there. Wanna know where your boy's hanging around. If Jake's directly driving to Seattle he still could make it in time."

Charlie pushed the red button and threw the phone on the kitchen table.

"Come on, let's go. Plane won't be waiting for you!" His face was colored in a deep angry red. He took my bag and opened the door.

"Some more minutes, dad." I urged him. I was cold and I was afraid. Why wasn't Jacob here? Did something happen to him? Or did he change his mind? Didn't he want to be with me in Florida? Didn't he want to be with me anymore?

"No time left. We should be gone 10 Minutes ago." Dad grabbed my arm and almost dragged me out of the house.

"I don't wanna go without him." I started crying.

"Don't, Bella. You will go to Renee. She is so happy that you will be there."

"But …"

"Don't answer back, Bella. Jacob can catch us in Port Angeles, still no need to worry."

I climbed into Charlie's Police car, wiping off the tears from my face.

"Something could have happened to him." I mentioned sobbing.

"Ah, Bells. This boy is old enough to take care of himself. I believe Jacob made the night out with his friends and forgot about the time." Dad tried to soothe me, but I knew Jacob would have told me if he had planned a night with his friends. Dad started the ignition and pulled out of our side way. With more speed than usual he headed to Port Angeles. Halfway there Dad's cell phone buzzed with an incoming call.

**Charlie ****POV, Saturday 7 am**

I always knew the boy would break Bella's heart. I tried to calm her down. She was near desperation, I could see it in her eyes and hear it from her ragged breaths. I had so hoped that Jacob would be better for her than that Cullen boy. But obviously boys that young age couldn't be responsible enough to keep their promises.

Halfway Port Angeles my cell phone hummed. I drove aside and stopped the car. Then I answered my phone. It was Billy calling.

"He is here, Charlie. I found him." Billy said. His voice was all strange and tense.

"What's up, Billy? Everything alright?" I asked him seeing Bella's eyes getting bigger.

Billy seemed kind of unapproachable: "I'll tell you later, Charlie. Can't explain."

I couldn't make sense on what he was saying. I got angry.

"No, you better tell me right now. What's going on? Is Jacob breaking up with Bella?" I raised my voice. Bella winced and shrunk into her seat.

Billy rushed: "No. He doesn't leave your daughter. But he can't be with her right now. It's a Quileute thing. That's all I can say. You have to trust me, Charlie. Everything will be fine again." It was getting stranger and stranger.

"I did always trust you, Billy. But now…? You're hiding something. What is going on your reservation?"

I felt Billy batten down the hatches. And I got even more suspicious. For months I had watched strange things going on in La Push and the surrounding area. The big bears that had been seen. The dead hikers. Then Bella reported about those massive wolves in the forest. Some Quileute teens disappeared for days and their parents didn't seem to care. The mysterious gang Bella told me about which Sam Uley was leading on. And now Jake better wouldn't meet with Bella? Had he disappeared as well and Billy was just lying to me? I didn't want to believe it. He was my oldest friend. But the whole situation was odd. And I being the Chief of Police simply had to react.

"You have to trust me. Bring her to the airport. She has to be with her mother. Out of Forks." Billy repeated in a hollow voice.

"I will find out, Billy. You better have a good explanation for everything what's going on in your reservation or you will have to bear the consequences!" I really angrily barked into the phone. "I won't let Bella get hurt again. Tell your fine son he better not crosses my way. I'm fed up!"

I broke the connection and started the ignition.

"I'll get you to the airport."

Bella watched me.

"What did he say?" She finally whispered.

"Jacob can't come. A Quileute thing! That's all what Billy would tell me. But I find out!" I threatened fiercely.

Bella turned her face to the window and pressed her lips to a small, hard line. She didn't say another word until I had her sitting in her airplane. Only the silent and constantly flow of her tears displayed her disappointment and desperation.

My poor little girl. Heartbroken. Again.

**A/N: Pleeeeeaaaaaaaase leave your comments!**


	13. When unexpected things happen…

A/N: I am sorry, but I don't get, why the Line Breaks I order don't get saved...

* * *

**When unexpected things happen…**

**Almighty ****Author's POV, Saturday 7am  
**

When he regained consciousness every inch of his body was hurting and burning in its pain. He was shaking and quivering and trembling, trapped in an intermediate state between his human and his werewolf frame. His blood flowed hot as a lava stream, rising and falling through his veins like huge, devastating and fiery waves. The rain dripping through the trees couldn't cool down his fever. Part of his body was covered with fur. His one hand was still a wolf's paw. He didn't know where he was and what had happened to him. All he could feel was throbbing soreness and blazing heat and the fearsome cracking of his joints and muscles.

Someone was kneeling at his side, still heavy breathing as if he had been running for a long distance.

"Listen to me, Jacob Black. Can you hear me?" Jacob knew the voice was familiar and he slowly nodded. The movement directed to a new explosion of stinging pain in his body. Jacob bit hard on his lip to muffle a moan.

He knew there was something important to remember, that there was a place where he actually belonged to be and that of all freaking things that ever happened to him he shouldn't be here – lying helpless on the ground. He had given a promise but as hard as he tried to remember, he didn't know what it was he was searching for in his memories.

He tried to open his eyes but his lids were so heavy it was hard work to push them open. His pupils didn't focus and the incoming light seemed to roast his retina. Jacob knew the contours of the person next to him. He also remembered that the dominant eyes staring down at him were belonging to the Alpha voice that was talking.

"Jacob, can you phase?" He was asked

"Can't." Jacob mouthed as he failed to heft his torso off the ground.

"Choose either form! Human or wolf. Doesn't matter. But you have to phase. You cannot stay like this." The voice ordered. He now recognized it was belonging to his Alpha Sam.

Although Jacob had shifted into his wolf form since his genes forced him to do so he still wasn't used to this part of himself. And sometimes he even loathed his animal-me that was lurking, controlling and sometimes even taking command over his human self. He would simply refuse Sam's order to change into wolf form. He only wanted to be a normal boy, a normal man with a regular life.

He now fought desperate to phase back into his human frame. But he couldn't concentrate on what he was doing with all the pain blocking every reasonable thought. Jacob feared to loose himself over all those pain and he gladly welcomed the numbing darkness that was finally wrapping around him once more taking away the pain.

He didn't know how long he remained unconscious. Had it been hours, days or weeks? Or was it just the time you needed to draw a breath?

"You can do this, young one!"

Another voice called through the man-boy's fogged up brain. A mature and wise voice. Commanding but not dominating. The deep voice of a born leader.

"You've gone through this once, you can do this again!" The voice said staying prominent through the veil of torture the boy was in.

"Just allow your cells to adapt to whatever happens to you right now!"

Jacob kept his eyes shut as the rumbling baritone voice told him what to do. But still he couldn't concentrate. Every fiber of his body just hurt and his oversensitive skin experienced the rough ground as if he was lying on piercing needles.

He heard the man's voice ordering others around.

"Go to my house and bring the drums and the Holy Pipe we need for a sacred ceremony."

Jacob's mind was blank. He couldn't contextualize on what the man was saying and the meaning behind his words. It was just syllables and letters.

"Embry, bring some blankets." Now Jacob heard a shifting and rustling as someone left the place.

"Jared! Help me out of my chair."

"Quil, run and ask your grandfather and the Elders to come. I might need them."

"Billy, what is your plan?" The voice that belonged to Sam asked.

"We have to help Jacob. You can watch him growing as you stand here. But his body functions are overly responding to the change."

His son's body was overheated, even compared to his usual high temperature. His heart was beating too fast and his muscles were still twitching and cramping. The russet brown skin was ashen now and covered with cold sticky sweat. The man touched Jacob to give him certainty of his presence.

"He has to accept what and who he is or I'm afraid he can't take it otherwise." The man didn't want to give in the angst to lose his only son but still his heart spoke a different language.

"How do you know?" Sam asked but instantly trusting on what the Elder said given to the boys bad condition.

"I don't know." The old man confessed. "It's just that I think to know what he needs." He frowned and the wrinkles on his face cut even deeper.

"We have to guide him to find his true spirit, like our ancestors did. We forgot about our origin. But what goes on here, since you boys can turn into wolves, demands the wisdom of our forefathers." Billy explained but still he was afraid and hoped to make the right decision. For a moment there was only silence surrounding him while he anxiously listened to the rapid heartbeat of his son and then he saw one of the young men returning to the square carrying a long leather-covered bundle on his broad shoulders.

"Did you bring the Tipi, Paul?"

"I thought Jake better would lie in a warm and dry place, Billy." Paul's sonorous voice couldn't hide the sorrow and fear he felt for his pack member.

"Thanks, Paul…" Billy whispered.

Quickly Sam and Paul erected the tipi and finally quiet footsteps announced several people approaching to the place. They were silent. No talking disturbed the whispering sounds of the forest and the rain. Jacob was being lifted by strong arms and carried into the tipi. Carefully they laid him on a blanket and small hands covered his body with a linen sheet and washed away the sweat from his forehead.

_  
The Quileute people joined here had never done a sacred ceremony on their own because there were none being held since the days of their great- and grandfathers. They would have to follow their instincts and wait for what their subconsciousness would tell them. As being the first people of this continent and still linked to each other and to their ancestors, they trusted that they would get the help they needed to go through an appropriate sacred rite.  
_

"Accept the heritage passed on to you." The voice said and outside the tipi a low but steady beat of drums began. Inside the tipi 3 men and a woman sat down in a circle around Jacob.

Billy Black reverently raised his voice: "I call to those who went before us for guidance to travel this day's path. I call to those who are yet to be born."

Jacob sighed as he realized that this voice could be leading him through this. He still didn't know that this voice belonged to his own father, he only knew intuitively that this voice would help him to find himself again.

"What this holds for me of Wolf and Man is what I seek. I ask for the Wolf to be one with the Man and I ask for the Man to walk beside the Wolf." A second, ancient and thin tenor voice chimed in. It belonged to the eldest member of the tribe, Old Quil Ateara.

"I offer this prayer to the Spirits above and humbly ask for their divine guidance to lead the men and women gathered here so we will be able to help your son through whatever is destined for him." Now Sue Clearwater, an elderly but still beautiful woman joined the prayer.

A rich delicious smoke filled the tipi. Its dark, spicy flavour soothed and calmed Jacob furthermore.

"Mother Earth, Father Sky, Great Spirit you made us what we are and so we offer our hearts and souls and we sound our drums to you. Great Spirit grand us wisdom and knowledge and the strength to stay grounded. We seek the strength to continue on this path that we journey on before you in a most sacred manner. We are all united and through this we find serenity." The last member of this circle was Sam. He needed to be here as well since he was the Alpha of the pack and therefore connected with Jacob in particular.

After a while and only the drumming to be heard and the smoke to be smelled, Jacob's ragged breathing slowed as well as his heartbeat oriented on the pulse of the drums. From time to time a young woman would come into the tipi to wash away the sweat from Jacob's body and to moisten his lips with some water.

Hours of drumming, meditation and prayers later the boy's fever broke and his pulse reached a normal rate. Billy asked his council members to leave him alone with his son. But before Sue Clearwater left the tipi he held her back and whispered: "Charlie became suspicious after Jake couldn't hold to his promise to go to Florida with Bella. I'm anticipating that he will come to the reservation to look after me and Jacob. You have to keep him away from here and the reservation." Sue Clearwater nodded and a little smile flitted over her face.

The youngest of them all, Seth Clearwater, slipped into the tipi. With relief he recognized that Jacob must have been phased to his full human form during the last hours. The horrible sight of him being half human half wolf was gone.

"How is he?" He wanted to know.

"He is sleeping. You can stay here if you want." Billy rested his torso on a blanket Sue had laid out for him.

"Mom told you might need this." Seth held the hand drum out to the man he had always accepted as the chief of the Quileute tribe. But now Seth adored Billy Black even more for what he did to help Jacob.

"Later, Seth." Billy drifted off to sleep.

Seth didn't know how long he sat, waiting and watching. But when Billy sat straight up again, Seth was ready to give his best to whatever he was able to help.

Billy pointed to the drum Seth had laid aside.

"My hands are still achy. Sound the drum, Seth."

Seth shifted his feet so he came to sit on his heels. He was nervous. Would he do it right? Drumming in a group was just like going with the flow, but Billy expected him to sound the drum all by his own. Would he keep the right pace? Wouldn't he mess up everything if he did it wrong? He hesitantly started to drum keeping up with the rhythm they had used before. Billy nodded encouraging and blew another smoky breath from the Holy Pipe into the tipi and quietly mumbled ancient lines:

"Great Spirit

Hear my words

For they are words

That come from the

Heart, soul and mind,

And are filled with

Wisdom, knowledge and

understanding.

Great Spirit

My words are for you

To know and understand

That in a most Sacred manner

I honour and respect

The life you have put before me,

I seek the strength

To forever continue

upon this Sacred path."

Something deep inside Jacob was struck by the words that were spoken. He felt peace though his body was still aching as the words and the low drumming were tugging and pulling on his soul.

* * *

Jacob didn't know time and he didn't see Seth leaving and Leah coming. Neither did he see Leah going and Embry approaching. The tugging and pulling increased over the hours he listened to the steady rhythm of the drum and as he breathed in the spicy scent that filled the space around him. Eventually everything around him felt so easy, so light and then he felt like flying. He sensed the drumming fading away but instead stillness he heard the pure sounds of nature. He paid attention to the dripping of the rain and the rippling of a spring. He listened to the wind whooshing through the trees and to the quietest sound a leaf could make when it fell down to the earth. As he opened his eyes he could see again and he looked finding himself lying on a blanket. What could this mean? Had his body finally given in the pain that had tortured him? Had he died?

But no, he witnessed his chest rising and falling as he was constantly inhaling and exhaling. He realized he must be floating in an astral form of his self. And only then he discovered the glistening of a long and thin and nearly invisible silver cord attached to both his physical and his astral body. He understood that he had discovered the ability of his ancestors which had been spirit warriors. He could wander in a spiritual form. He just had to follow the drive. It pulled him out of the tipi right through the smoke outlet and into the forest. But it wasn't the forest he was known to. There were Quileute running in a line as if preparing for a hunt. He didn't know their faces as he walked among them without them noticing him. They were talking in his Quileute language wearing the traditional clothes. Where was he?

* * *

Billy hadn't moved his limbs for hours as he guarded his son's body. He had sensed the change when Jacob's spirit left his body, lingered over them and then left the tent. Billy didn't know how the spiritual journey worked. But he had hoped that Jacob would find a way to follow the Vision Quest. All he could do now was watch and wait. He was tense and did not be aware of fatigue, hunger or thirst.

Billy felt a light breeze as the entrance opened and someone came in. It was Paul changing place with Jared. Without hesitation he began drumming and adapted to the rhythm Jared showed.

And then there was Leah putting a plate with food in front of him. Her eyes quickly checked over Jacob recognizing the fever that was burning up again. So she went to wash off the slick sweat covering his skin as she did before. But sooner than she could touch him, Billy stopped her, grabbing her hand and slowly shaking his head.

"Don't."

Leah backed away.

"He has to keep for himself. Touching him could be disturbing his journey."

* * *

Jacob walked through the forest, smelling the fresh green air, enjoying the sight of the tall green trees covered with moss, sneaking with his bare feet over the soft grass until he finally came upon the Quillayute River. Dawn was breaking and foggy steam rising from the ground. He watched the gracious water birds going with the stream and the fish flitting through the blue water. The sun was breaking through the clouds and He covered his eyes as the as out from the brilliant light a woman appeared. He swallowed hard as she came closer and he recognised her familiar silhouette and her loving brown eyes lingering on him.

"Jacob." She said in a high clear voice and reached out to touch his face. She tenderly stroked over his cheek, bent forward and placed a kiss on his forehead.

"Mother." His voice broke from all the emotions that overran him.

"Where am I."

"This is what we share, my son. This is our collective remembrance. I will show you now all you need to know."

* * *

**Epilogue of a Vision Quest**

**Jacob POV**

"_May Mother Earth teach you stillness as the grasses are stilled with light._

_May Mother Earth teach you humility as blossoms are humble with beginning._

_May Mother Earth teach you caring as a mother who secures her young._

_May Mother Earth teach you courage as the tree which stands alone._

_May Mother Earth teach you freedom as the eagle which soars in the sky._

_May Mother Earth teach you regeneration as the seed which rises in the spring._

_May Mother Earth teach you to remember kindness as dry fields weep wit__h rain._

_For all this will make you stronger and will grant you wisdom, knowledge and understanding. Accept the gift that has been given to you. Use it as it is your purpose."  
_

With my mother's blessings still in my head I was aware that I must be back in my physical body. I curled my fingers then clenched my hands. The pain was gone. What was left was a slightly sore feeling but easy to deal with.

"Jacob?" I heard the voice who had been constantly talking to me throughout the whole time I was passed out. I opened my eyes to slits adapting to the light falling to my retina. Then my eyes focused on the blurry contours of a man sitting at my side. As the frame got sharper with the adjusting of my eyes I learned that my father was smiling down at me.

"How are you, boy?" There was relief in his voice and pride. Pride? Because of what?

"I'm fine." I croaked, my throat so dried up the Sahara dessert was a wet oasis compared to my mouth. I propped up on my elbows, looking around and checking where I was. Dad handed me a bottle of water that I finished at once.

"What happened?" I wanted to know why I was lying in a traditional tipi.

"I could ask you that." Dad replied and waved with his hand towards me and over my frame.

"Oh." I was beyond words as I looked at my arms and at my chest. I must have grown. I was bigger, a lot bigger than I had been before my senses left me.

"Seems, you made it through another growth spurt."

"But that's impossible! There's no report of something like that to happen." I muttered, but actually I was too exhausted and didn't care about what it was. I was just glad that it was over.

"You were here with me all the time." It was a statement not a question. Dad tilted his head and smiled. He gestured me to get to my feet. So I lifted myself up into a sitting position, went into crouching and stood up. There was no way that I could erect to my full height. The tipi was too small and I nearly unhinged the stakes. Man, I was close to hit 7 feet and I was freaking naked. I crouched back and covered my front with my hands. Dad handed me some pants I recognized as my own and I quickly pushed my feet through the openings but only to learn, that I could not get them over my thighs.

"What the…" I wondered and Dad snickered.

"I guess we have to buy you a new wardrobe, hu?"

I grimaced and shook my head in disbelief.

"How long was I… was I… uhm?"

Dad rubbed his hands over his face and now I saw how tired he looked and how deep the wrinkles lined his face.

"Almost two days."

And then out of the blue like a lightning it struck me. Before I knew what was happening with me the wild shaking started that heralded I was going to phase.

"Jake, stop it!" Dad hollered and lunged himself backwards and away from me. No! I clenched my teeth and pressed my fists into my side. I wouldn't explode here in front of my father. I inhaled a long and deep breath and willed the shaking to stop. And then I asked the most basic question:

"I should have been with Bella right now. Where is she?"

**  


* * *

  
A/N: ****This chapter means a lot to me because I put all my heart and feelings in it, esp. because the Native American traditions attracted me since early childhood. I never lost this special connection. So please be gently with me. You can leave your questions. I'll try to answer them as good as I can but be aware that I'm not a native. I only used the things I know and my author's freedom. **

**And some further explanations: **

**Actually the Quileute lived in blockhouses, so I don't know if they truly used Tipis for sacred ceremonies. **

**Drumming is part of our collective heritage. It's being used for meditation, ****preparation for a war, healing rites and worshipping or just for fun all over the world. **

**Videos I listened to while I wrote this chapter:**

**youtube dot com/watch?v=R7IR7OXydvU&feature=related**

**youtube dot com/watch?v=UbBGGYV4RTM&feature=related**

**youtube dot com/watch?v=bo2MGCHA69Q**

**youtube dot com/watch?v=0Xkbj8MDZXo&feature=related**

**youtube dot com/watch?v=nimY9St3WrQ&feature=related**

**youtube dot com/watch?v=hVmUWz0nGgc&feature=related**

**The words I used for the prayers are from traditional prayers of the Native American people. Some are original, some I mixed up for a better fit.**

**The ceremony I described is also known as Vision Quest, a rite of passage, compared to an initiation, which was meant for a boy coming into adolescence. The boy would seek loneliness and would starve and meditate for about 4 days to find his inner self and his spiritual guide and sometimes even a new name. The Vision Quest symbolizes the passage from child to adult. **

**Remember, my fellow readers, your reviews keep me going! I'll answer!  
**


	14. Florida Part I Angst

**A/N: As always. The characters belong to Mrs. Meyer. The plot is mine.**

* * *

**Florida**

****

Part I "Angst"

**BPOV**

I cried the whole time I was sitting in the airplane. The elderly woman sitting next to me eyed me with a pity expression on her face. From time to time she handed me a new Kleenex I thankfully took from her but otherwise I ignored her. The stewardess tried to cheer me up but it had no effect on me. I couldn't imagine that Jake wilfully had turned me down. But what had happened that caused his absence? Charlie didn't say much after he angrily cut the phone call. The only thing he did tell me was about Billy explaining: _It's a Quileute thing._

And adding one and one there must have happened something. Something happened to Jacob?

My mom picked me up and seeing her face I knew that she already knew. So I needn't tell her. But apart from that I was a mess she really seemed happy to have me here. She just wrapped me in her arms, hugged me tightly and then dragged me to her car to bring me home. I was surprised seeing my room there. It was totally new and not the slightest hint of my childhood room. I was honoured that mom left me a room in her new house, since I decided to stay in Forks. But with this room she really outdid herself. It was decorated in warm sunny and earthly colours. The bed, the desk and the cabinet were all white and from massive wood, the wall behind the bed had a terracotta shade, while the other walls were painted in a brilliant white. The whole room smelled woodsy and sunny and green.

"Mom." I whispered. „This is wonderful!" I went over to the bed, stroked over the white sheets, touched the brown wool comforter and caressed the yellow and green pillows.

Moms face gleamed with pride and joy.

"I'm so glad you like it. I'll give you some minutes to restore yourself, honey. Phil will be home soon and then I really want to show you our house."

Mom left my room and I sat down on my new bed. I discovered that I even had a telephone standing on my desk and with wobbly legs I went over and quickly pushed in Jake's number. I let the phone ring for several times but nobody would answer my call. After my third or forth try within twenty minutes I kicked the phone to the table, dropped on my bed, hid my head between my arms and fought away the tears that wanted to spring from my eyes again. I was so anxious to know what was going on. Maybe it had something to do with the missing hikers? The thought of Jake facing a vampire turned my stomach into a lump of ice and utterly freaked me out.

Before the desperate sobs could rise again I heard a car arriving. I jumped to my feet and ran to the window. I pushed it open and stuck my head out. Maybe?

"Hi, Bella!" It was just Phil. And the hope, that it could have been Jake burst like a soap bubble and was just plain silly.

"Come down, let me see you!" Phil called up to me and smiled brightly. I turned around to meet Phil downstairs. I walked through my room and opened the door just to learn that I stood in the cosiest bathroom ever and that this bathroom obviously belonged to my room. The bathroom was also customized in the white-brown-sunny theme and included a tub as well as a shower besides from toilet, sink and a wonderful white wooden bathroom cabinet. Sunny, warm Florida or not – I would take a bath ASAP.

Now I ran down the stairs, I really was glad seeing Phil again, and Phil already waited for me.

"Finally you're here. We missed you, girl. So, where is that Jake-boy of yours?" He asked hugging me in a big embrace.

I heard my mom inhaling and when I looked up from the embrace I saw her gesturing to Phil like a mad man.

"He couldn't come." I squeaked. My voice was suddenly very thin and trembling again.

"Oh, that's a pity. Why?" Phil wanted to know further even though Renee desperately shaking her head back and forth.

"Tribal affairs." I mumbled into Phils chest avoiding to shed new tears. I needed to trust Jake that he had a good reason not to come and that this reason wasn't me.

Two hours later after lunch and a tour through the house I felt utterly exhausted from all the crying in the airplane and the fighting away any tears in front of Renee and Phil. I excused myself and went to my room. On my way up the stairs I found a computer standing and asked for permission to use it.

"Bella, feel free to use everything here. It's still your home!" Renee said rubbing over my back.

I switched the computer on and quickly searched for the phone numbers of all the pack members and of some Quileute families those names I remembered. I wrote all the names and numbers down on a note pad and then went to my room. I sat down on the desk again and systematically dialled each and every one of those numbers from the list I had written on the pad. I called at Black's first, but no answer as I had expected. Then I tried at Ateara's nobody at home. Clearwater, Call – no answer either. Calling at Paul's I had his mother receiving the call. But she didn't know anything. When I rang through at Emily's place she told me last she knew from Sam was him going with Paul and Jared to Quinault.

At last I tried some more people but nobody could or would tell me about Jacob's or Billy's whereabouts.

I was very frustrated when I had reached the end of my phone list. And then the fear came creeping up my spine and I felt it reaching out to my already frantically racing heart. The back of my neck got tight and I started sweating. I tried to breathe regularly but the pressure on my chest was so hard I couldn't expand my lungs to inhale enough oxygen. I got ever more restless and frightened while I imagined the most terrible things that could be going on at the reservation.

I started hyperventilating and became dizzy. Short before fainting I laid my head on the desk and folded my trembling arms over it, burying my hands in my hair. I really tried hard to fight the fear. Over and over I recalled my memory of how the 5 wolves had appeared on the meadow to chase Laurent down who wanted to kill me. I remembered how huge they had been and how fast and I held on to Jacob's statement that a single vampire really had no chance against them. Eventually I could work my body again and drag my feet to the window. It still was open and I deeply and slowly inhaled some fresh air. The panic attack left me even more tired and I really needed to sleep for some time now. I walked to the bed, curled down in a foetal position not long waiting for sleep to come.

"Bella."

I stirred in my sleep. I knew THAT voice.

"Bella." Once again the velvety voice reached my audition and my fogged-up brain tried to wake up my drowsy body.

"Bella!" I was called for a third time and I sat up with a start. My heart was beating so fast it nearly jumped out of my chest. HIS voice.

I looked around.

The room was empty.

"Bella! Wake up. Dinner's ready!" This clearly was the voice of Renee combined with another rap at my door. The pounding of my heart slowed as I realized that I must have been dreaming, but still it was beating fast enough to hurt in my chest. The adrenaline that my adrenal gland had shot into my system now pumped furiously through my veins and made me wide awake.

"Bella!" Renee now opened my door. "Still sleeping, honey?" She saw me sitting on my bed and smiled at me. "Dinner's ready. Won't you come down, Bells?"

"Give me a minute, mom."

"Okay." Mom left my room and I walked into the bathroom, splashed my face with cold water and when I looked in the mirror I discovered my red rimmed eyes and how pale I was and how wrecked up I looked. Love's a bitch, I thought, it hurts and stings and you go crazy when you're left in the lurch. I sighed and walked into the kitchen.

The evening with Phil and Renee was nice and relaxing and I didn't think sorrowful but lovingly of Jacob as both of them asked me a lot of questions about him. The meal cooked by Renee had been an adventure for my taste buds, but I survived it. And card-playing had been fun even though I lost each time. It was close to midnight before I finally was back in my room. I tried to call Jacob again, but he wasn't home and also there was no Billy answering the phone. Alone in this room the fear was hovering over me again. But this time I avoided to get captured. I took the bath I had promised myself this afternoon and lingered in the water until it was cold and the skin on my fingers and toes was crumbled. Meanwhile I was freezing cold although the room had the right temperature. But nevertheless I opened the window again to let the warm summer night's breeze into my room. I dressed into a shirt, a warm hoodie and some soft sweat pants, slipped under my blanket and wrapped myself mummy style. As soon as I switched off the lights the unbidden thoughts came back and horrible pictures of what could have happened to Jacob appeared. I didn't want to cry, I wanted to be faithful but the tears came anyway.

I fell asleep.

Tears covered my cheeks and wetted my pillows.

And the thoughts that had haunted me changed into nightmarish dreams.

**

* * *

**

Does she think she is dreaming or does she know it is real?

**  
Edward ****POV**

The night was utterly dark for human eyes. So I didn't need to hide as I walked to her mother's house, climbed up the wall and glanced through her window. She lay curled up in her bed waiting for sleep to come. I heard her crying. Obviously she felt miserable about the fact that Jacob Black had ditched her. It fit my purposes and I would use my chance. Yes, I would use it. Now as she was hurt and vulnerable she maybe would be open to my apologies. I would snatch her and take her away and keep her all for my own. And then I would give her what she always had desired and she would be grateful for that. Wouldn't she? Now that Jacob Black didn't come with her to Jacksonville there was no one who could prevent what I had planned. And before the wolves would even know what had happened we would be gone and they wouldn't know where to search for us. I knew that would break the treaty if I took her with me and change her, but I couldn't stand being without her anymore and once we were gone, there was no way they would be able to find us. Alice would be thrilled when I brought Bella back. Had she already foreseen what I would do?

Very carefully and avoiding to make a sound I opened the window a little bit more, so it was enough space for me to climb in. Bella's scent hit me with massive force once I was in her room. It hadn't lost anything from its power over me and as soon as I breathed her in my salivary glands secreted the poisonous venom. But I wouldn't give in the temptation of her delicious smell. And tempting it was although I discovered that it was no blood lust that I felt.

She stirred in her sleep, tossing, turning and talking and I could see the contours of her body as she moved under the blanket. I swallowed hard. Her body had changed since the last time I had seen her. It had become more feminine and alluringly.

As I was able to concentrate on what she was talking in her sleep I understood that it wasn't my name she said over and over again. It was HIS. I gritted my teeth in response. She was close to him now. Obviously very close. I had seen the pictures in Alice head. I should have known.

I stayed hidden in the darkest corner of her room, tried to get used to her overwhelming flavour and watched her sleeping. I had missed being close to her, I had missed watching her while she slept. Sitting here reminded me on our time in Forks and I tried to ignore that she neither had invited me to be here nor that she even knew I was here, watching her like a filthy stalker.

I couldn't say what woke her. She hadn't been dreaming for a while now given to her non-talking. Bella opened her eyes, shifted her position and looked around. I hid even deeper in the corner as her scent washed over me. Would she feel my presence? Would she smell me? Would she maybe see me although I was covered by the shadows? But she rested her head back on the pillows, closed her eyes and fall asleep again. Once more tears found her and the wetness on her checks heightened her scent. She drifted deeper and deeper and as I was sure she slept soundly enough I began talking.

"Bella."

Her lids blinked open and her eyes tried to locate the source of the voice she had heard, but she could see nothing but the blackness in her room. And given to her steady heartbeat I was pretty sure she was still sleeping, probably lingering between delta and REM stage, the two deepest levels of human sleep.

"Not real." She whispered to herself not able to fight the drowsiness. Her body was utterly relaxed and her breathing even.

"What I told you was a lie." I whispered hoping she would hear me through the veil of her sleep. "I have always loved you."

She buried her face in her pillow as if to hide from my voice.

"I only left for your own good." I explained and rose from where I sat.

"I never stopped loving you." The pained tone in my voice sounded oh so familiar to me, matching the tears she shed now in her sleep.

"Edward." She whispered barely making a sound.

"Bella…" I was standing on her bed now. So very close and still too far away.

"Go away." She mumbled, waving me away as if she could feel my presence. It cut me to the core. Her voice was flat and hollow and not really here. Was she rejecting me?

"Don't you still love me?" I couldn't help but stroking over her wonderful hair.

"You're not real." Her heartbeat skipped a beat and she barely could breathe. She had always reacted like that when I was around her. But did she react to my vampire attributes or did she react to me? Her unconsciousness obviously couldn't deny that I was present. It sensed the danger.

"Bella." I begged. I wanted her to listen to me. She shouldn't send me away.

"Leave me." She repeated with much more power in her voice now.

"Let me explain." I went to my knees, moving my face close to hers. She would smell me when I talked to her close as this. Maybe that would finally wake her.

"I don't want you anymore." She whispered while fresh tears were streaming over her face.

I closed my eyes. The pain her words caused was tremendous. And she used the words that I had said to her months ago. Was she aware she was using them?

"I want you back." I let my hand hover over her neck as close to her skin as I dared. I needed to feel her pulse and her warmth. It could be so easy for me now to take her in my arms, to wake her, to tell her that I was real, to tell her that I finally had come back. But I didn't move. I lingered in the moment not knowing what held me back to do what I had wanted to do.

"…too late." She stated quietly. Her eyes were open again, her face a mask of pain that mirrored mine, but she looked right through me as if I wasn't there, floating in a dream state beyond my reach.

Suddenly the atmosphere in Bella's room changed. The air around me stirred and it was as if a blow of heat tried to push me away from her. I resisted the urge to follow its command and stayed close to her. And then something happened what I had never expected to be granted for me: Her mind opened and I got free access to all of her memories.

I wasn't able to see a lot of her thoughts but the still very present memories of me and of the day I left her. Deeply burned in her mind where the words I had said to her and the mimic of my face when I broke with her. I saw the forest around her as she lay there for hours, getting colder and colder. I learned that she had wanted to die at this very moment and the weeks after. Too much for her the torment she felt.

I dropped my head, clenching my hands. I wanted to withdraw and run away. How could she still love me after I had put her through something like that?

I couldn't stop following the pictures in her mind. I saw her sitting in our meadow, lost and alone, writhing in pain, rocking back and forth and then Laurent stepping into her view. He nearly attacked her but was stopped and chased by five huge teenage wolves.

Guilt washed through me as I realized that she would be so very dead right now if it hadn't been for the wolves to protect her. I had left her alone and never thought of the danger I had still put her in because she knew of our existence.

Her memories became happier now. It was as if she would see the world through different eyes. Everything around her became brighter, more colourful and more brilliant. And as written in a book I could read in her mind how the bond between her and Jacob had developed and deepened. It became obvious that she was in love with him. And I was surprised by the way she assessed him: Blessed with a sunny and jaunty but still regardful and attentive mind not only defined over his glorious, muscular body. Glorious was the word that ghosted through her brain. It nearly knocked me off my feet the way she desired him. Coming to bodily contact Jacob Black had successfully shoved me aside as he was willingly giving her what she wanted. She once had desired me like this too, but I had pushed her away not trusting my killer instincts. And still the lust for her blood was so prominent I would never dare kissing her like he was kissing her. I could only give into my desire for her, when once she would be equal to me, changed, a vampire. But how far was I willing go? Minutes ago I was convinced that I would rob her from her bed, her parents, her life and take her with me. But now after sharing her happy memories I wasn't so sure anymore…

Once again the air stirred and I saw a big russet wolf marching towards me. It was as if he was detaching from what she was dreaming now. While in the background I saw her embracing Jacob Black, the wolf looked into my eyes as if he could really see me. Right before my very eyes he came closer and closer until I had the feeling he would jump out of her memories and into this room, into my face.

A tremor rocked through the wolf's body and his form changed from animal to a huge man. And the wolf's face became the face of Jacob Black. He didn't carry the body of the boy I had seen in Bella's memories. He seemed to be changed, looked older, had grown larger. I was sure that would he be standing before me for real he would overtower me for several inches. I felt danger emanating from the picture projected by Bella's brain. Another fiery wave collided with my ice cold body, much stronger now, pushing against me with mighty force. I backed away from her, nearly losing my balance. How very vivid a dream could be? How was it possible that I felt threatened by a vision of the wolf boy?

"You ever haunting nightmare get away from her!" He spit. His hot breath left a burning path on my skin.

Bella's memory talked to me? I shook my head back and forth.

"LEAVE. HER!" The Jacob-vision said with strength and power. I couldn't deny that I was curious and frightened at the same time. I had seen much and I knew from some abilities humans and vampires could develop. But this was just freaking me out. How dangerous could he become to me? He was just a vision, a dream, right? What had I to fear?

I stretched my hand out, longing for Bella's neck, but before I could end the move he had tackled me down to the ground. One of his huge hands held me by my throat. I clenched my hand and hit my fist in his face but I met only hot air. His frame blurred as my fist rushed right through him and then he phased again into wolf form, deeply growling at me. This wasn't real? He was only a spirit. How could he do what he did? How did he affect me but I couldn't fight him off?

"You will leave her now." He said in his mental voice delivering through his very graphic memory pictures of him and Bella together.

All my will to get her back left me. I had seen into Bella's mind. I had seen her happy with this boy. I had seen into Alice mind and knew Bella's future – which didn't include me. And now I couldn't shut off the vivid pictures of Black's brain, bombarding me with Bella pictures from past to present. He was switching back and forth in time confronting me with Bella's torment when she was so hurt from my leave but also he showed me her happiness and pleasure when she was together with him.

All hopes I had built up broke apart. Although he hadn't come with her as otherwise promised she still held tight to him, wrapping her future around him. I had no right to steal away her mortal life as it was meant for her. Reason had me again. This was why I originally left her. This was what I could give her. No, I wouldn't risk stealing her soul. If I truly loved her I would let her live her life with Jacob Black as long as she wanted to share it with him.

The Jacob-vision unfastened his grip on my neck and shifted back into his human form. But he wouldn't let go of his position right in front of her bed so I had no change to get near her. I realised that if I had come earlier in time I maybe would've had a chance to get her back. But now I had lost her. To strong now was the bond between Bella and Jacob. She had given me up. She had told me by herself, even when it was only in her dream. But human dreams mostly hit the truth and were more honest than a deliberate decision.

With one swift motion I was back on my feet and stepped away from where both of them were located. I saw Bella sliding closer to where Jacob's form was lingering in the air. I watched her bending towards the heat he was emanating. She hadn't leaned into me like this when I was close to her only minutes ago. It was time for me to take my leave. It was time for me to let her go.

There was a better man waiting for her, able to protect her from a predator like me even if he wasn't present in a physical form. What more could I wish for her?

"Be happy." I whispered and vanished as fast as I only could.

**  


* * *

**

**BPOV**

"**It scares me that I thought about leaving Jacob for him…"**

I slept for long hours this night but I didn't feel refreshed when I finally woke up in the late morning hours. I stayed in bed listening to Renee laughing and talking to Phil in the kitchen. After all the months being in Forks with Charlie working all day long, it felt good not to wake up entirely alone. I turned on my belly, pressed my face in my pillow and enjoyed this moment of peace. I knew I had been dreaming this night. And there had been moments when I felt so very close to Jacob. It had been as if he was sitting right by my side. I was slumbering in and out of sleep remembering some things I must have been dreaming this night.

There had been Edward in my dream, trying to convince me to take him back, who wanted to have me back. First I had been delighted to hear his beautiful voice and the words I had longed for so desperately. And I played with the idea to be with him again. Our hours in the meadow, the evenings and nights we had talked, the careful and tender kisses we had shared, everything had been present at once. But even in my dream there was a bitter taste in this. Would I ever, could I ever entirely trust him again? Wouldn't I be afraid eternally that he could disappear again?

As I became clear of that I tried to thrust his haunting images out of my head. In my dream I told him the words that I would probably never could have told him being awake and standing in front of him dazzled by his mere presence.

"I don't want you anymore!" I had whispered and it had felt good to tell him good-bye. Though I had been dreaming I had known he would ever have a place in my heart, but I didn't want the pain of his loss to rule and dominate my life anymore.

And I knew for sure, that in reality there was someone waiting for me. Not a memory, not a dream but someone who had never given up hope and faith. Someone, who trusted that one day I would find my wits and finally realize how much he meant to me.

Whatever had been the reason that Jake couldn't come with me I trusted him that he would tell me and that the explanation would be the utter truth. Whatever it would be I maybe had to fight with, I would face it and I would fight for. Jacob was worth it! Jacob, my Jacob!

As I concentrated all of my thoughts on Jacob I remembered another scene of my dream. It had been as if Jacob had walked straight through my head into this room. His presence had been overwhelming. He had been much taller and broader than I remembered him to be. He had ordered Edward to back away from me.

"You ever haunting nightmare get away from her!" Jacob had rumbled and when Edward refused to go, Jacob behaved utterly territorial and aggressive and lunged for Edward, pressing him to the ground. And while hovering over Edward he had been phasing into his wolf form, frightening Edward to the core. Even though it had been only a dream it was for me as I could touch both of them.

"You will leave her now!" Jacob had demanded one more time and then he had showed Edward very graphic memories of me and himself. To my utter amazement I could see the pictures too, it was as if we were linked through our minds and I could feel everything that Jacob was feeling.

The pain which had mirrored on Edwards face shook me even now that I was awake.

"Be happy." Edward had whispered before he left through the window moving with vampire speed almost impossible for me to follow his movements.

I sighed and turned my face to the window and now I saw the window curtain moving and flowing with the wind that blew through the opening. I hadn't opened my window that wide yesterday before I went to sleep. A new fresh breeze made the curtain move and a shudder ran over my spine. Too clearly I remembered now the features of Edwards face as he came closer to my bed. Too clearly I heard him telling me that he still loved me. I even felt the touch of his hand, as he had stroked over my hair. Too evidently I remembered my own words as I told him to go. And so very lucid Jacob's presence still lingered in this room, even with my week human senses I still could smell a Hauch/Erinnerung of his fresh woodsy scent. I stared at the place where Jacob had pinched Edward down to the ground. Something was glistening in the morning sun. I didn't dare to stand up and check what was sparkling there.

I opened my mouth to draw in a shocked gasp but instead hysterically started to scream.

Only seconds later Renee ripped the door open.

"What's up, honey? What's up?" She yelled obviously sharing my hysterics.

"Mom,…"

Once she closed me in her arms nothing could hold back my tears now. I cried my heart and my soul out. I cried every single tear I'd already cried for Edward and I cried the tears I wanted to shed for Jake because I was so afraid for him and because I missed him so terribly. There was so much confusion in me that I almost couldn't handle it anymore and I honestly was scared for my sanity. How could that be? Had both of them been here this night without me even noticing that it was real and not a dream?

"My little girl…" Renee held me tight. "Did you have bad dreams? What scares you? Tell me, I'm here, Bella."

"Oh, mom, mommy…" I cried even harder and before I could stop I babbled the forbidden words, words that were secret and not mine to tell:

"Jacob's…"

Sob.

"…werewolf and…"

"Edward …"

Sob.

"…vampire…"

"And they both were fighting and I wanted to go with Edward but then I wouldn't and Jake threatened Edward away and I… I… "

Renee embraced me even tighter. "Oh, Darling. No wonder you are scared like hell. Dreaming such things would scare me too…"

She made me stand up on my feet and lead me down in the kitchen.

"I'll make you some coffee, dear. That will help you. And then we will talk." She put a mug in front of me pouring the steaming black liquid in. I grabbed the mug and brought it close to my chest. I needed the heat to warm me up from the inside.

Phil came in and dropped his huge gym bag on the floor. His hair was still wet from the shower he had minutes before.

"Man, Bella. You're hell of a screamer. I thought my shower would freeze to ice…" He shuddered and encouraging rubbed over my back. "I'm gone. I've got a game today and you girls clearly need some alone time…"

He kissed Renee good-bye, took his bag and some seconds later he pulled out of the garage and drove away.

Renee looked at me with a curious expression on her face.

"Feeling a 'lil better now?" She wanted to know. I shrugged my shoulders and my head dropped to my chest. Still the sobs were shaking me.

"I want to talk to you, Bella. I really want." My mom took a seat beside me. "I can only guess what you made through the last months. But Charlie told me you're getting better and I thought, you would be happy with Jacob? Why are you still so sad and desperate?"

"Don't know, mom." I whispered. "Edward is still so present in my thoughts."

"But you love, Jacob, do you?"

"He is so very important to me. And yes, I think I love him."

Renee raised her eyebrows. "Bella, you think or you know?"

"It's hard to explain, mom. Jacob helped me through all of this. And he said he would be waiting for me until I would be ready to fall in love again…" My tears finally stopped and I just loved what Renee tried to do. Would she help me to analyse my confused feelings.

Mom took my hand. "But you wanted to have Jacob with us. You wanted to spend your vacation with him. He must mean something for you."

I had to smile. "Of course, Mom. Jacob is far more than a friend. I know that I love him, but it is so different. Everything is so different now."

It was Renee's part to laugh now.

"Oh Bella, my sweet innocent, silly girl. Of course it is. Because HE is different. You cannot compare him with Edward. Each person is different."

"But Edward was so…, and Jacob is … hmm." I didn't know how to explain the differences without making a complete fool of me. I already had told too much and I needed to make sure, that I wouldn't repeat this mistake.

"It scares me that I thought about leaving Jacob for him…" I finally managed to say and my face became deep red at the revelation. "I feel so bad for that. I even hate me for that, because I don't want to leave Jacob. I honestly don't." My tears started to flow again.

"Ok, honey. May I tell you, how I see the things?"

"Go on…" I encouraged my Mom. I had always loved her crazy way to look at problems. Maybe it would help me. But it help just to be with her, to tell her everything, to have serious woman-talk.

"You've got to understand your dream not in a frightening, but in a more symbolic way. You know, dreams are sometimes like symbols for the things we seek to understand." Renee started.

"You told me, Edward had been a vampire in a dream. A vampire is a great charmer. I mean, remember him, hasn't he been a cute, handsome, charming boy? My dear, but a vampire is not only a dazzling creature but ultimately harmful, don't you agree? What does a vampire do? He feeds from people. Right! And that it what Edward, …ahem, no…, your spooky memories, still do. They suck your energy. And deep inside you already know this but yet you can't let him go."

My eyes opened wide. Way crazy Renee! She hit the point perfectly.

"And on the other hand you have Jacob. You feel drawn to him too. You told me Jacob had been a wolf in your dreams? Right?"

"Yes, werewolf…" I corrected her.

"Werewolf? You mean that freaky man-thing that turns into a beast at full moon?" Renee scratched her head.

"Ahm, no, actually, he was more like a real wolf and he could turn into his wolf form per free will…" I decided I could give her this information since my Mom actually thought we were discussing only a dream.

"Anyways, wolf, …" She blinked at me. "And you said, that this Jacob wolf was threatening Edward away?"

"Ye-yes."

Renee smiled and rubbed my arm. "I like him for that."

Now she brought forth her Jacob theory: "Ok, I guess, the Jacob wolf protected you. He wanted you to be rid of the 'vampire' Edward. See, the wolf stands as symbol for protection, care and loyalty. And so the wolf protected you from getting drained from the vampire. Did you know, that seeing a wolf in your dreams means survival, self-confidence and pride?"

"Yes, he is very self-confident and proud, but…"

"No, Bells, I didn't mean what Jacob's character is. What I wanted to say is, that maybe YOU need to have more self-confidence and pride."

My mouth fell open.

"Bella. Look, you have always been so unsure of yourself, but you are beautiful and you have a wonderful character, you're loyal, caring and selfless. You are someone who simply must be loved. But you never see your qualities. And you let it happen that your first boyfriend almost broke you…"

Ouch. That hurt. And it hurt even more because Renee was right.

"Bella, you need to become strong and independent. You need not to define over me or Charlie or a boyfriend. You are Bella. And we simply love you for that. You are good the way you are. You don't need to hide. And if Jacob wants you, you don't need to run away, because you think you cannot love again or that you are not good enough. You will love again. That is what your heart is made for. That is what makes us human. And Bella, there is someone waiting for you. Someone who seems to love you so deeply that he even waits and stays with you although you still grieve for someone else. Don't let Jacob wait any longer. Life waits for no one, dear. Live it up!"

I guess this was the longest speech Renee had ever said to me and I was completely stunned. There was so much truth and wisdom in her words. I hadn't expected to hear those words from my crazy mother.

"Ok, Bells, and now I'll show you Jacksonville."

She laughed and took the now empty coffee mug from my hands. "Go dress and be down in some minutes. You need to do something stupid, like girls of your age do. Maybe we get you a silly dolphin tattoo or a navel piercing. You know, something of what you will say in some years: How could I? And still you will be laughing at it."

I shook my head over and over again. And I couldn't help but to laugh with my Mom.

"We will spend some funny days here in Jacksonville and when you're back home in Forks, you will go and get you your Jacob. Will you?"

I went to my room and searched for some sunny coloured clothes. I dressed into a bright blue shirt and white pants. When I was ready with my sightseeing preparations I took the small glass vessel that was standing on my desk and once had contained my childhood treasures. The things that were still in it I poured into one of the drawers. Then I took a piece of paper, went to the sparkling fluid on my floor and kneeled down. My heart was beating very fast as I shoved the paper under the silvery fluid. It formed a perfect drop on the paper and rolled easily into the vessel. With grim satisfaction I closed the vessel and stared at it. Now I finally had an evidence of Edwards existence and that he had been here. Although I still was confused I could honestly tell to myself that I would close that case now and look forward into my future and what it would behold for me – maybe together with Jake.

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**A/N: And you know folks, replies cheer up the author!**


	15. Florida II I didn't choose any of this

**A/N: From now on I'm working with a BETA. So I hope some of my all to German phrases go into a fine English. **

**All known characters belong to Stephanie Meyer. The new ones belong to me. **

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**  
Florida**

**Part II **

**JPOV**

"**I didn't choose any of this."**

"_How long was I… was I… uhm?"_

_Dad rubbed his hands over his face and now I saw how tired he looked and how deep the wrinkles lined his face._

"_Almost two days."_

_And then out of the blue like a lightning it struck me. Before I knew what was happening to me the wild shaking started that heralded I was going to phase._

"_Jake, stop it!" Dad yelled and lunged himself backwards and away from me. No! I clenched my teeth and pressed my fists into my side. I wouldn't explode here in front of my father. I inhaled a long and deep breath and willed the shaking to stop. And then I asked the most basic question:_

"_I should have been with Bella right now. Where is she?" _

My father lifted his heavy body from the ground. His eyes flickered somewhat nervously. He seemed to be very worried, everything about his demeanour screamed about stress and uneasiness.

"Jacksonville." Dad said then and gave me a blanket to cover my bare parts since there was no way I would get my old shorts over my thighs. I carelessly wrapped the blanket around my hips. My stomach turned at the mere thought of Bella alone in Florida.

"You let Bella go even though you knew there is a vampire still after her?" I accused him, barely able to manage the trembling to stop that started down at my feet and worked its way up to my neck. For a moment a memory popped up in my mind. I saw myself standing protectively in front of Bella in a room I didn't know. But as fast as the image appeared I lost again, not understanding its meaning. The strange expression on Dad's face increased and he straightened up to his full height. Only days ago we had been equal in height. But now I was almost one head above him!

"I told Charlie to make sure she's leaving Forks." I heard a new force in Dad's voice that wasn't only fatherly anymore. It was far more than that. He had gained authority, more than he already had before.

"We've got to deal with two problems. First, the vampire woman is already here and she is not alone!"

A new flush of aggression ran through my body. Vampire!

"What's the second problem?" I wanted to know ignoring my increasing hostile mood.

"Charlie got suspicious. He doesn't trust me anymore. I'm pretty sure he knows something and he wants to discover the truth about us. Sue could distract him a bit, so he wouldn't come to the Reservation while we were …uhm… otherwise occupied. The last thing we need him to see is us celebrating sacred ceremonies."

Though Charlie had seen me in wolf form two days before I was sure, he couldn't have figured out that it had been me running around his house. So I nodded at my father's words but my thoughts were with Bella. I was sure that she had cried as she had waited for me. She must think I had ditched her, when she didn't hear anything from me. My stomach started to hurt.

"Now that you're better we've got to meet with the Elders at once. We already lost two days because of what happened to you. We need to know what this growing of yours could mean and we need to discuss how to deal with those vampires." Dad ordered and interrupted my thoughts. I still wasn't over the fact that Bella was unprotected and alone in Jacksonville, but he didn't allow any further comments from me and walked out of the tipi. The way he walked I could see his joints and muscles must be hurting him. So I wanted to support him, but he didn't give me permission to do so. I was glad that he did not have to walk a long distance, because I nearly had made it home before my … whatever … breakdown. But as we passed our house, Dad still refused to use his wheel chair. He walked straight on to the Clearwater's house without showing any signs of weakness. I'd always been close to my father but now I experienced an overwhelming sensation of thankfulness, respect and loyalty.

As we walked along the street I saw the reverential glances people shot at us and I should have felt awkward because of my barely covered body but I did not worry about that. I only chewed on the facts that vampires again disturbed the peace of our tribe and the surrounding area and that I broke my promise to Bella and left her alone. Neither could I understand why the pack should spent time on discussing things with the Elders.

As we came to Clearwater's there was Seth standing in the doorway, nervously bouncing up and down on his toes. When he saw us he ran across the street nearly bumping into me. I was sure, if we had been in a more private place he would have hugged and embraced me. Instead he just smiled the hugest smile I had ever seen on his face.

"I'm back, Seth!" I said, now smiling myself, feeling some of my old boyishness.

"Seth, see if you can get some clothes that fit Jake." My father ordered as we entered the Clearwater's house. There were some people waiting in the living room. I noticed Old Quil and Sue Clearwater as well as Kaleb Call, Embry's father who wasn't even Quileute and one other male of Sam's family members.

Though all of them were curiously seizing me up, I ignored them and followed Seth to his room where he asked me to wait for him. I took the few seconds of this alone time to inspect what has become of me. I looked in the mirror. It was still my face and my body that I saw but now it had lost all of the last childish traits. My features were sharp and angular. The muscles that ran along my long limps and down my back were ever more built up and even my eyes seemed to be different. Could eyes look older? Was this still me? Could this serene and composed man still be me, Jacob Black, the sunny, funny guy? I tried to smile and it made my face softer and familiar.

"What you're doing, Jake?" Seth came back with a small bundle of clothes and threw it on his bed. "This is all I found. Mom didn't keep anything else of father's stuff. This is what Dad had in with his fishing gear. It must be big enough for you, hulk."

"Oh, Seth. This is so damn stupid…" I sighed with a last check on my face. I turned around. "What the hell has become of me?"

"Donno…" Seth mumbled though still grinning and smiling. „You're just huge and that's all. Still Jacob Black in there!" He laughed and threw the clothes at me. "Come on, hurry. They're waiting for you!"

I made a face and stepped into Harry Clearwater's Jeans. They were too wide around my waist, hanging dangerously low on my hips and too short. I rolled the fabric up so the Jeans ended mid-calf and pulled one of the shirts over my head. The door flew open and in came Embry and Quil shouting out Hello's and slapping my back.

"Man, look at you! Couldn't I be the lucky one growing into this killer body?" Embry pouted as he circled me.

"You scared the crap out of me," Quil confessed quietly.

A sharp whistle called our attention and we rushed down the stairs and into the living room, where we all lined up at the wall like we were going to get executed.

"We are here to discuss the matters of our heritage." Billy started to talk. "Jacob has grown again, and this time I think to his full height. And I'm sure he experienced a spiritual journey. We need to know what happened, Jacob." The other Council members nodded their heads in unison.

"Why should it matter if I have grown again?" I asked grumpily.

"Because it never happened before. The facts that are passed down tell that a boy starts to grow when he's about 15 years old and stops after he phased the first time. And from that time on he stays unchanged as long as he is constantly phasing." Old Quil answered.

My already pissed-off mood dropped even more. Did they tell me that I'm a freak?

"My theory is it happened because there's true Alpha blood running through your veins. And now you are a lot bigger than the others." Sue Clearwater said and my father agreed with her.

"That's my idea too, Sue." Then he faced me again. "What did you learn when you were in your astral form? What did you see?"

I slowly shook my head and said: "Can we talk for a minute, Dad? Alone??, Please!!."

I didn't wait for his agreement I just walked out of the room waiting for Dad to follow me.

"Jake, why can't you cooperate with us?" My father asked as he caught up with me.

"Because I won't tell them. It's private. This is my business, I didn't choose to become a werewolf. I didn't choose any of this. And I do not want to be the Alpha either. I will not spread my personal business to the whole tribe, I need to deal with this first Dad, you got to understand me, I simply can not."

Dad rubbed his face. His voice was strained but full of sympathy as he answered me: „I am so sorry, Jake. I wish nothing of all this ever happened to you and the other kids. But you finally have to face the facts. I hoped that this is what you learned as you were in your spirit body. You can't hide from your destiny."

"I didn't even have time to realize what happened. And now you expect me that I am willingly take over as Alpha of our pack? I don't feel ready for this." I hissed and what if I didn't even feel fit into this leader role, I thought to myself. I just wanted to get the hell out of there, I wanted to run into the forest and just think about everything for a while. I needed to think about what had happened to me...again But of course I couldn't do this to my Dad right now, I just couldn't disappoint my father more than I probably already did.

"I saw Mom out there,…" I told him quietly. "And if I ever tell anyone about it, it would only be you. But I can't tell them."

Dad froze and I knew by his facial expression, that he was surprised, shocked and emotionally touched. He placed both of his hands on my shoulders. "Okay." He gave in.

"You don't need to tell anything unless it is important to our current situation with those vampires. But if you learned something that would help us fight them, we need to know."

I raised my hands and shook my head once more. "I don't remember everything. But what I do remember now doesn't include anything about vampires."

We went back inside and Dad started to discuss the vampire problem. I was so grateful that I got this needed break, I looked at my Dad with thankful eyes and he understood me at once.

"Sam, Paul and Jared already checked out the vampire's trail on the Quinault territory." He informed me, since I was the only one who didn't know the latest information.

"And I caught a new track near our borders as well." Embry chimed in.

"Since Sam stays on the Reservation with Paul and Jared, you have to protect this area." Old Quil addressed us. "Sam decided to split the pack, since the vampire is running back and forth to distract us."

"You told me, she is not alone. How many?" I wanted to know from my father.

"From the tracks we found, it must be four or five." A female voice caught my attention. Leah came in. "Sorry, I'm late." She said and tucked her shirt into the band of her shorts. "But I didn't want to mess up on my first day. I ran as fast as I could to catch up with you."

"Four or five?" I repeated surprised and made a note to myself to ask Leah about what 'first day' she was talking about.

„Is this the Cullens coming back?" My mind went numb. No, this doesn't make any sense. The Cullens were more than five.

„No, those scents aren't familiar apart from that of the female you already know." Kaleb Call informed me. "We don't know why she is with other vampires. Sam thought she was a nomad."

"Bella told me that too." I answered while my brain worked full power to make sense of all the new information.

"I don't think we need the 'why's and 'how's." Old Quil mumbled. "What is needed is a structure. You guys need to form a pack of your own, if you want to fight effective. You need a leader, while Sam is watching over Quinault."

They all nodded and turned their faces to me. _Arrrrrrg._

"Leah is the oldest of us. She can take the lead." I suggested.

Leah snorted angrily. "You're kidding, Black. I won't run at the top. You guys couldn't even think straight let alone fighting while staring at my ass, jackass."

"I wouldn't stare at you." Seth defended his himself, his face turning bright red.

"As if I'd ever looked at you." Embry giggled and let his eyes wander over Leah, appreciating what he saw.

"Didn't you know, Clearwater, that men need some distraction before a battle? I wouldn't mind having you in the lead." Leah grabbed the remote control from the table and threw it across the room, aiming at Quil's head. With a quick movement he caught the remote control before it hit his head and laughed even harder.

„That's disgusting!" I scolded my bickering pack members. "I won't tolerate any sexual harassments against Leah. Only because she is the only she-wolf it doesn't mean you're allowed to verbally attack her without any consequences, so shove it guys, or else." I growled at Quil and Embry. Leah rolled her eyes, gave me a pissed off look, but stayed quiet. Seth adoringly looked at me.

Suddenly it became clear to me that it would be my job to be the one who held all of them together. I closed my eyes, took a deep breath and said: "Ok, I will freaking take the lead, you guys will listen and I don't want any problems. I will lead them, under one condition, which is that I want Leah as my second in command and that is that. And only as long as Sam is absent."

The Elders nodded. I leaned towards Quil and Embry and snarled: "And you two, consider yourselves lucky if I won't downgrade you two idiots to Omegas! Dorks as you are..."

I knew if Quil and Embry had been in their wolf form, their front legs would have bent and they would've been sneaking away with their tails between their legs.

"And now, you two are going on patrol, patrolling every single inch of the area and report back to me in two hours." I barked. Where did this commando tone in my voice come from, I wondered? But it worked well. Quil and Embry ducked their heads and rushed away not daring to reply.

My dad cleared his throat. „Okay…" He rubbed his face and then a big smile appeared on his face which only could mean 'I told you so'. I just glared at him without saying a word.

"I think we are done with this meeting now. Jacob, would you walk with me back to the house?"

"Sure. Sure."

Back home I ordered Dad to stay on the couch while I took a quick shower and searched my stuff for something that would fit me better, now that I am in this freaking huge body, but could not find anything. Damn… what should I do now, I asked myself. I took just a moment to examine my …new! body.

_Holy crap,_ _I look really eh… muscular. My abs are rock hard and my shoulders really broad. _

_My arms are the bomb now and my… _

_Okeeeee, stop already Black! You have very important business to attend right now!_

So I dressed again in Harry Clearwater's old shorts and went into the kitchen. I was hungry as only a starved wolf could be. Ha. Ha. Ha.

"Hungry, Dad?" I asked my father but he only shook his head. I opened a tin with some Ravioli and shoved the food down cold as it was.

"Ah, man Jake." Dad commented on my eating manners.

"Sorry, no time." I mumbled. „I have to check the area myself. But I need to call Bella first. Do you know her Mom's phone number?"

"No, sorry. Don't even know her new name." Dad said.

Without further ado I took the phone and called Chief Swan at his Office.

„This is Jacob. I need to speak with Bella. Will you give me her number in Florida?"

"No." Chief Swan didn't seem to be surprised to hear my voice.

„Please, I need to apologize." I really need to speak with her, this is very important.

"You let her down, I can't trust you right now Jake. Where the hell have you been?" Charlie demanded to know and I couldn't fully understand all of the words Charlie was muttering. I decided I didn't want to know what Chief Swan was saying, but I had a feeling he was cussing me out big time.

I was a little surprised at his stern replies, but I needed Bella's phone number. I was ready to grovel if need be, I had to talk to Bella. I made an attempt to explain myself to him: "Sorry, I had a fever."

"I don't believe you, Jacob Black! What happened to you, why did you let Bella down? Were you drunk or something?" Charlie hissed aggressively which made my hair stand up on end as a reaction to his verbal assault.

"No!! I did nothing like that." I defended myself. Knowing that I would have no success I repeated stubbornly: "Now, would you please give me her number?"

Charlie's being silent on the other end of the line told me he was not about to give me anything, let alone Bella's phone number and I was tempted to just slam the phone down. I once really liked Charlie. He had been like family, almost like a second father. I was hurt and disappointed that he treated me like an enemy now that I was with Bella.

"Will you tell me what's going on at the reservation?" Chief Swan suddenly demanded. My eyes popped open.

"No." I spit. „That's nothing of your concern."

Damn, I had to change my approach with Charlie, he would not give in, perhaps I'd try some niceness, but he made me so aggressive.

"People are missing, Jake. I'm the Chief of Police! It is my business, what's going on down there. And I will check it out, I will find out what's going on there!"

"You can't come here." I rumbled and my father rose into a sitting position. I was pissed off from Charlie's ever assaulting and mistrusting behaviour, but more than that, I was really concerned about his safety. I owed Bella that I would protect Charlie from getting killed by vampires.

"You cannot, …" Swan held his breath. „Who are you to…" He stuttered as he started breathing again.

"I'm Billy's son, who is – as you clearly remember - the Chief of our Quileute Tribe. And I am the newest Council Member. And therefore I forbid you to trespass our area!"

„You don't!"

„I do!"

Swan broke the line and I suppressed the urge to yank the damn phone out of the wall, rip it to pieces and crush the rest to mere dust.

"You're aware of the fact, that Charlie will stay tuned now more then ever?" Dad looked at me with an angry frown on his face. „You're always so impulsive. When will you ever learn to be patient?"

„Charlie just makes me upset. He doesn't trust me. He implies I would harm Bella. And now he wouldn't give her phone number to me." I pouted and as soon as I said the words I knew they sounded utterly childish and silly.

"Jacob, man up!" Dad's wrinkles didn't smooth, instead he got angrier with each word he was saying. „You're going to be the Alpha of a pack and therefore a representative of our Council. You really need to learn something about good manners."

"Stop talking about this Alpha crap again! I'm not going to be the Alpha, I don't want this responsibility, and I need to get a hold of Bella, like right now!" I now yelled at my dad.

"You're such a stubborn mule!" My father stood up from the couch and closed the distance between us with swiftness I didn't know he was able too do that. He stopped in front of me staring into my eyes.

And even though I should have known better I couldn't keep my mouth shut answering a dryly mocking: "Hew-haw!"

And with this Dad nearly jumped down my throat and started yelling back at me. "I never hit one of my kids; don't try my patience son because I'm tempted to do so now! No, better yet I just grab your neck with your foolish thick head and bang it against the wall until you find your wits! are you hearing me, Jacob Black?"

I have never seen him that furious before, I was stunned, worried and I felt my own temper rising yet again all to the same time (I had pissed him off before, but he had never reacted THAT way.)

"Just a few minutes ago you spoke on behalf of our tribe. You denied Charlie access to our reservation, using MY name and the Councils name for it! Who do you think you are?!?" The more Dad was shouting and raging the more heat emanated from him and the stronger the spasm got, that rocked over his skin.

"Charlie is like family! What did you think?? Did you think at all??"

I just stared at him in disbelief as everything in his aura screamed WOLF. Could that really be? I'll be damned.

"You're not going to phase on me, Dad?" I teased and I laid my hand on his trembling arm. His body temperature was so high, it could without doubt compete with mine now. And he stood straighter and more effortless than ever since his disease held him captive.

"Don't try to distract me, Jacob Black!" Dad growled at me.

"No, I don't… I mean, look at you, Dad." I stuttered.

„You go and apologise to Charlie and then you will try to work this out with him! Charlie is welcome on the Rez and you will make it happen that he knows that, do you hear me, son?! He's one of my oldest friends!" Dad didn't stop yelling at me while he was poking his finger into my chest. Didn't he recognize what was going on with him?

I tried to comprehend what Dad was saying, I was just too shocked to give him any replies right about now. Should I apologize to Charlie?

"No. I won't!" I growled back at him. „ I will have a 'word' with him, later, when we killed the vampire, that I promise you. But now it's too dangerous for Charlie to come here."

Dad narrowed his eyes to slits and bent forward as if ready to attack me. "Dangerous? Did you ever think that this vampire could also hunt him in Forks if she wanted too? It's only a matter of time until she arrives in Forks."

The phone started ringing but we ignored it completely.

"She won't, I will make sure of that. We will kill her before that will happen!" I hissed through my clenched teeth and this was causing another tremor rocking over my father's skin.

"What's this?" He murmured shocked as he watched the tremor pass.

"You have it in you." I said impressed and found it hard to breathe. I kicked the insistently ringing phone into the sofa cushions to make it stop.

"The heat is eating the pain away." Dad noticed full of amazement.

I couldn't stop the proud grin that spread all over my face. I was so darn happy for him. "Dad, I wish your pain would never return" "

Dad shook his head not understanding what was happening, he looked at me with disbelieve and awe.

"Man, you've had it in you all the time." I murmured still astonished.

An ear-splitting howl pulled us back into reality. A second howl joined the first and I knew it was Quil and Embry calling me right away. A chill ran down my back. Did they found a fresh track? I needed to know at once!

"We'll talk about this later, Dad." I promised and ran into the forest, phasing before I even reached the woods.

* * *

**Charlie's POV**

Dumbfounded I still stared at the phone and could not believe what just happened. Jacob practically threw me off the reservation. I didn't know if this was his payback because I refused to give Bella's phone number to him or if it would have happened anyway. Maybe I shouldn't be that hurt by this. Maybe I should just ignore it as typical teenage overreaction. But damn it, he hit a nerve, because Jacob had always been like a son to me. I knew him from the day he was born, when Sarah and Billy first showed him to me. I had been there when he did his first steps. I saw him grow up, I even had been there when his mother Sarah died, and Billy needed some help with his three little kids. And some days when I missed Renee and my daughter so terribly that I was afraid to lose my mind, I'd driven over to the Black's house, to get away, but Billy was mourning over the loss of his wife Sarah too. And then Billy and I just sat there, pretending to have a 'normal' life while we watched Jacob and his sisters play and fool around. I rubbed over my eyes to dispel some of the painful memories of the past.

I went into the station, but I just could not concentrate, I must have been sitting there at my desk staring holes into the wall for quite awhile, until my colleagues started to get nervous about my unusual behaviour and started asking me what was the matter with me, I did not reply, instead I just left and took the rest of my shift off, knowing that I wouldn't get any better today. As I drove home my eyes automatically checked over the forest surrounding Forks and a little chill ran down my spine. Things were getting stranger and stranger. I wondered what kind of animal it was that had killed those hikers. Or could it be that it was no animal at all, but a human? Some sick human? And what did the Quileute's know? We never kept secrets from each other but nowadays Billy was obviously hiding something from me. I had to find out, I really wanted to speak with Billy again, and I sure as hell will. I also will have a word with Jacob again. Damn that boy, I do care a whole lot about him.

It was still raining or again raining, well, living in Forks meant living in probably the wettest place on earth. While I concentrated to keep my eyes on the road as well as on the forest I angrily drummed on my wheel. Jacob just gave me riddles. What happened to that happy-go-lucky boy? Why did he behave so strange? His behaviour wasn't just normal, even for a hormonal teenage boy! He was such a loving and caring person around Bella but as soon as he saw me his good mood vanished and it was replaced by rebellious remarks, towards me. Had I been too hard on him? I couldn't help but thinking about how much Bella was hurting after the Cullen's had left, am I making Jacob responsible for it now...somehow?! I was certain of one thing, Jacob does deeply care about Bella, and it showed that he was trying to protect her. I also noticed that lately he more often than not gave me the feeling of not being welcome, almost as if he was nervous or sometimes even etchy around me. But why I asked myself once again. It was as if he kept a secret that he didn't want me to discover. This was driving me nuts, however, maybe everything was just harmless and had something to do with his growing up and furthermore, I might really been too harsh with Jacob. That boy obviously must be struggling with a load of aggression and testosterone. Maybe it would help if I considered my own youth to understand Jacob better? But I just could not shake that feeling, there is something I just knew it!!!!!

That made me think of Bella's sorrow again; just a couple of months ago Jacob unexpectedly started to avoid her and told her to stay away from the reservation. Bella had told me, that Jacob had been afraid of a gang, which was lead by Sam Uley. But then some time later, everything seemed to be a misunderstanding and she never mentioned a gang anymore.

Eventually I reached home and pulled into my drive way. I went inside and being so frustrated I slammed my car keys on the table. It was time to warm myself some dinner. As I turned on the oven and shove in some left-over pasta I found myself thinking once again about that boy. I took my beer and the meal to the living room and considered all the changes he seemed to have gone through. Jacob had grown into a huge man in just a few weeks and there was something dangerous emanating from him. I kept an eye on him and the other boys, which were growing just about the same speed, absolutely amazing. I knew there was something going on. But right now I couldn't put a finger on it...not yet anyway. One more thought crossed my mind, lately, Jacob acted like he was instinct driven. Though I knew that it couldn't be, that would be way to crazy, his behaviour reminded me on a caged wolf or lion.

While I was eating my pasta I suddenly knew one thing for sure, I didn't want to have Bella near the Quileute's, especially Jacob right now. I could not shake this strange feeling. I had tried to talk with Billy about it, he wouldn't really listen what I had to say and he kept joking about it, he really did not want to understand my concerns. Maybe Billy lost his grip on things since he was so depended on Jacob now. I knew his condition bothered him allot, he did not want to be dependent on anybody and I also knew how embarrassed Billy always was about it.

Two days ago Billy refused to tell me what happened to Jacob and why he hadn't been able to leave with Bella to Florida. But I'm sure that Billy knew exactly what happened to his son. Just the way he excused Jacob. "It's a Quileute thing!" THAT just told me right there, right then, that there must be more to it then Billy was willing to tell me. Maybe they had a drug problem on the Reservation after all???

I noticed that the rain had finally washed away the tracks the huge bear had left on my porch, as I stepped out for some fresh air. The night I had seen the animal I'd been surprised finding it so close to my house. But then, it wasn't unusual that bears searched for food where people lived. That's why I kept our garbage in a secured shed until pick-up day, because I knew of the dangers. I went inside again. It was too quiet without Bella and I was edgy. I missed her, even if she was just gone for two days, three more to go. Thinking about it, made me realize how much I enjoyed coming home nowadays knowing my daughter would be there. But right now I felt kinda strange with all of these thoughts running through my mind.

I started to pace my kitchen once again. I needed to find out what was going on in the Reservation. I needed to know if there was any truth at all about a gang. I needed to know if Bella was safe when she was with Jacob. And I swear, I would find out! The very first thing I would do tomorrow morning was going to take a real good look at the forest around LaPush.

Renee had called me at my office this morning and reported about another nightmare. Renee had been so shaken when she told me about it. I just wished Bella would get over her terrible nightmares and be her old self really soon now. I cursed the day my girl had met this Cullen boy - she still wasn't over that he had left her. But who was I to blame her for that. I wasn't over Renee leaving me YEARS ago. And obviously Bella was just like me.

I should be glad that she dated Jacob now, I can tell how deeply she cares about him and how close they have gotten. But then again Jacob wasn't the Jacob I had known from small on. There was one mystery following the next. And still I didn't know anything concrete, except what my gut tells me, something is going on .

After I had changed into a pair of Jeans and a Shirt, it took me another 10 minutes to get my shoes and coat out and then I was off to Forks again because I just couldn't stand it to be alone tonight. I drove back heading for the Forks Tavern. I chose a lonely corner hoping the live music would distract me from my foul mood. I didn't want to be alone but I didn't want to talk to people either. But of course people never left me brooding alone and so I was quickly involved in various conversations.

"So, Chief Swan!" One of the men asked. "Is there anything new about the missing people?"

I just shook my head.

"And what about the bears?" The a second man chimed in. But I couldn't tell him anything either.

"Couldn't it be wolves, Chief Swan?" the third suggested, it was Bob Marks. "Some of the people, who live near the forest said, there was howling to be heard."

"Look, I'm just as much concerned as you are. But it is not within the Forks District where the latest incidents had happened. So my hands are tied. But I will stay close by in any case. I'm going to ask the Forest Rangers for help."

Half an hour later I said Good-bye and left the bar. Of course the Forks citizens were concerned and anxious. I hadn't been able to clear up any of the "animal attacks" that happened months ago here in Forks. Now the mysterious disappearing proceeded. It was about time that the Police made the area safe again.

Back home I called Jacksonville. It was already late in Florida given the time difference. I hadn't thought about that but it already was too late to hang up. It was Bella that answered the phone and I could hear by the sound of her voice that she had been sleeping and that she was disappointed when she heard my voice instead of Jacob's.

"How are you, Bells? Already been sleeping?"

"Yeah, had a long day. Renee dragged me through each clothing store in Jacksonville. Everything fine in Forks?"

"Jacob called me today. He wanted to have your phone number."

I could hear Bella sucking in a deep breath.

"Jacob? How is he?" She wanted to know and her voice trembled.

"Seemed to be fine, Bells."

"He hasn't called me yet."

"Can't. Didn't give him your number."

"Dad?" Her voice changed from sad to upset. "Why?"

I wasn't in the mood for long explanations.

"I don't know what's going on in La Push, but Jacob told me to stay away from the Reservation." My voice became harder. "Bells, he even prohibited trespassing. I was really mad about that. I just got carried away…"

I almost couldn't bear her strained breathing.

_  
Gasp. Gasp. Gasp._

Now her voice kicked two octaves as she practically yelled at me. "Listen, Dad. You need to do what he told you." Then she was muttering to herself, mumbling a name that sounded like "Victoria."

"But Bells…" I was confused. I hadn't expected THAT reaction.

"No. Dad. You need to stay out of the Reservation."

My heart started to race and I felt my blood pounding through my veins. SHE knew what was going on in La Push? My own daughter knew and wouldn't tell me?

"Bella?" No it was me who was gasping for air. "What do you know?"

She mumbled another strand of words and syllables I didn't understand.

"Isabella. You have to tell me!"

Her voice was tense. "I just can't, Dad. I am so sorry."

I was so disappointed and hurt that my heart started to ache.

"Bella…" I whispered feeling betrayed. Nearly everyone who was close to me seemed to be in on the mystery. Why didn't they tell me? What was going on?

"We talk about this later." I said. I couldn't go on with this phone conversation right now. I would only make accusations which I really didn't want to and I need to think first.

"Bye, Dad." Bella murmured with a guilty tone in her voice.

"Night, Bells." I ended the connection and sat down on the couch.

The persistent ringing of the phone startled me. I must have fallen asleep. The TV was still blaring, the lights still on and I was sitting fully dressed on the couch. My body felt stiff and cold.

"Swan." I croaked into the receiver.

"Chief Swan? Sorry for the late call. I'm Ituah Woods Chief of the Quinault Police. We could use your help."

"I'm all ears. What's up?" I was all business and wide awake now.

"We found the two missing hikers. One survived. But he's in bad condition. He is very traumatized and talking about some non-sense being dragged from Forks Forest to Quinault. Mentioned some huge wolves, too." Chief Woods reported in a low and serene voice. "I wouldn't bother you to come over, but you had had those animal attacks shortly before and I want you to check on the bite marks of the dead hiker."

"I'm on my way, Chief Woods."


	16. Time for the Wolves I

**A/N: **As always, I don't own any of Meyer's characters. Persons that come new into this story belong to me.

* * *

**Time for the Wolves**

**  
Part I**  
__

Billy POV

I was all jumpy and twitchy since Jacob had left as Embry and Quil called him. It already had been more than 12 hours ago and I hadn't heard anything from him yet. I could not deny that I was troubled. Of course. They had no experience. It was their first fight. But I knew from the old lore that their instincts would kick in as soon as they were in their wolf form. So nothing was left for me but to wait it out.

I felt so much better since yesterday the burning and trembling proved that the inactive wolf genes in me came to life. My temperature was still running hot but it didn't affect my other body functions. My old calmness was gone as was the pain that for so many years belonged to my life. I could walk easily, my muscles were strong again and well structured and I felt about 10 years younger. A quick look in the mirror confirmed my assumption. My wrinkled face had smoothed out quite a bid. All the deep lines carved in from the constant pain had vanished. Only laugh lines were to be found on my skin.

I was kind of worried though at the thought of how to explain this strange 'healing' to Charlie. Man, remembering Jacob's 'declaration' to Charlie made my muscles tremble. I was still angry about his behaviour. I had tried to get Charlie on the phone to apologize for my hot tempered son, but Charlie didn't answer any of my calls and so far he didn't call back yet. I was pretty sure, that Charlie was pretty pissed off right now, and I couldn't really blame him for it.

Maybe I should just go and try to find him. What could hold me back now? With my new strength I wasn't stuck on my house or the Reservation. I walked out and into Jake's garage. He wouldn't be upset if I did borrow his bike, I grinned like a kid. I easily handled the bike, pushed it out of the garage and then quickly drove of to Forks. Riding the bike was exhilarating, I had not felt that 'free' in years. I didn't mind the rain. I didn't forget anything about the handling of such a machine. The wind and the rain cooled my hot skin. I felt alive and beaming with energy.

As I reached Charlie's house I slowed down and parked the bike on the sideway. I walked down the small path to the house, remembering that last time I had been here Jacob had to push me in my wheel chair. I shrugged my shoulders casting off the memory, knocked and turned the doorknob. Nobody answered the door and I found the door was locked. Charlie had to be at the station then or, maybe he was on his lunch break. I searched my pockets for a piece of paper to leave Charlie a message. I only found an old sales slip where I scribbled a short line: **I was here. Call me when you're back. Billy.**

My next stop was the Police Station. Charlie had to be somewhere. I walked straight into the building, ignoring the surprised glances. Yeah, I'm a walking man again! I thought. I needed to get a good explanation soon. But maybe I could just tell them about my faith healing. People believed in that nowadays.  
"Billy Black?" asked Deputy Marks as I met him on his floor. He looked at me, confused, but didn't say a word about my condition.  
"What's up?" He asked instead and put aside some files and the coffee cup he held in his hands.  
"I wanted to talk to Charlie. Is he in?"  
Marks shook his head. "No, he left for Quinault this morning."

I raised my eyebrows and waited for further explanations, which did not happen because suddenly we heard a melodious voice yelling like crazy.  
"What the f*** is going on here?" A beautiful woman stepped into the room. "Where's Swan? How long do you think you can keep the room sealed off here, huh?!? Is anyone intending to move their a***** around here at all?"  
This beauty stopped only inches away from the young deputy's face and I could see her trembling with rage. Fascinating, I thought!  
"My boss is going to fire me, if I don't get this f***ing room ready for new tourists. I want this room to be made available as soon as possible. I will give you until tomorrow morning", she hissed and stormed out of the office. Her long black hair flowed freely down her back, ending at her waist and emphasizing her beautifully rounded butt. Okay, stop drooling already, old man. I told myself and swallowed hard, feeling more alive with every damn second.

Like the eye of a hurricane she left utter silence behind. I was just stunned and Deputy Marks kind of confused.  
"Ah, she's a pain in the ass." He finally groaned, tucking on his uniform. "Since Chief Swan sealed the room of those missing hikers, she's calling at least twice a day."  
"And?" I asked for more information, not being aware of that I had bent forward, glaring at the Deputy.  
"Her name is Rogue. She's working at the La Push Resort, doing the book-keeping."  
"What a strange name." I talked to myself. "Never saw her at the Reservation."  
"She's new. Some exchange student."

I nodded understandingly. "The hikers were booked at the Resort? The Deputy nodded.  
"I've got to leave now. Tell Charlie I dropped by. He needs to call me." I hurried out of the Police station, hoping that I could catch her in the parking lot. But she was already gone. I grinned foolishly. I have to have a word with Sue Clearwater to inquire about her feisty new employee. Sue held the responsibilities for the Resort and was managing the staff. But since the La Push Resort belonged to the reservation and therefore was amenable to the tribe and in particular to the Tribal Council, I could help out this Rogue beauty as well.

I let Jacob's bike roar to life and headed towards La Push again. Now that I knew that the missing hikers had stayed at the Resort, I could ask Rogue if she could show me their room. I could get some valuable information for the pack. And I would see this woman again. I could not help my groin from itching. Damn, that feisty attitude turned me on! I just got to see her again soon! I easily managed the bike over the slippery road while I indulged in ever so vivid imaginations.

_  


* * *

  
Charlie's POV  
_

I blended out every disturbing thought while driving down to Quinault. I had stopped at my Station taking the files of the unsolved "animal attacks" with me. Apart from that I had left a message for Deputy Mark so he would know where to find me when he started his day shift. After two hours time I reached the Reservation and pulled into the parking lot in front of the Police Station.

Chief Woods walked towards me when I entered the building. He was a sturdy man, Native American, no doubt and about the same age I am. He seemed to be waiting for me anxiously. We greeted each other and then he guided me to his office.  
"Good to see you, Chief Swan." He said in a deep, sonorous voice. "I just came back from the hospital. I tried to get some information from our victim, but he didn't talk at all. He was just over and over repeating what we already know."

"Coffee?" He asked me. Remembering the little sleep I got last night I gratefully took the mug with the hot and strong liquid from his hands.  
"What do you know so far?" I needed some more information to assess the situation. "Do you have a name at least?"  
"Nope." Chief Woods said popping the "p". He leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms in front of his huge chest. A smirk appeared on his russet brown face and his almost black eyes glistened while he snickered quietly. "I noticed that he had a tattoo on his left pectoral. It said 'Bad Ass!'" He pulled a photo out of a file and shoved it over his desk toward me. I looked at a man lying in a hospital bed, all bruised and battered. I suddenly shuddered.

I groaned and rubbed over my aching stomach. Living in Forks spared me from violence and homicides most of the time. But lately I was confronted with it more then I was used to. Watching the photo made me feel sick.  
"Man, he looks horrible."  
"Yeah, but that's how he looked yesterday morning." Woods pulled another photo out of his jacket and flung it over to me.  
"This picture was taken only two hours ago." He explained while he leaned towards me. My eyes widened astonished as I looked at the photo. The bruises on the man's face were almost gone, his nose subsided back to its original size, the black shadows under the man's eyes changed into a light greenish yellow, and I could barely make out the deep scratches on his left cheek, which actually would have needed to heal for weeks and then have stayed prominent as fiery marks.

"Amazing…" I mumbled and laid the pictures back on the desk. "But why did you call me? How can I help you?" I asked Chief Woods.  
"I needed to inform you, since the victim was kidnapped in Forks, which is your jurisdiction. As I already told you, I need you to check on the bite marks. Would you mind coming along to the morgue?"

I agreed and stood up, but internally I moaned once more. This clearly was the dark side of my job.  
Chief Woods lead me through some corridors and down the stairs. Woods opened the door to the morgue, introduced me to the coroner, Mrs. Alex Seaward, and asked her to show the victim's body to us.

Minutes later I stared at the corpse.. The bite marks on this body in all likelihood seemed to be from human teeth. And as I took a closer look I noticed that the bite marks seem to have come from probably three different people. What a horrific thought that was!  
"The body was found completely drained." The coroner reported the latest results from the autopsy. "There are a lot of broken bones, but we found no blood on the ground and anywhere in the area where the corpse was found."

Disgusted I stared at Chief Woods who was just as clueless as I was, but he came to the same conclusion as I did: "My first thought is some weird vampire cult. Who ever it was, we need to stop them now, once 'word' gets out to the public, people will start to panic."

We thanked Mrs. Seaward for her help and walked back to the office. I pinched the bridge of my nose as I tried to fight down the unpleasant urge to throw up.  
"Who would do something like that?" I asked rhetorically.  
Chief Woods shrugged his shoulders and shook his head back and forth. He also had a green colour under his brown skin.

Once we got back to his office, I took my files out of the briefcase.  
"Okay, let's compare these cases. Your case here seems to have similarities to the bodies we found in Forks."  
We reviewed and compared all the photos and autopsy reports. As we study quietly, I suddenly noticed a pale bite mark on both of the corpses which we had not noticed until now. Same location, same size, hmm...  
"Would you please instruct your forensic experts to compare the bite marks?" I asked Chief Woods as I became aware of this evidence.

A phone started to ring and Woods started to search his pockets. I pointed to the table in the back, where he had left it laying at the coffee machine.  
Woods made a face and answered the call. Then he turned around and looked at me.  
"It's the hospital. ... Mr. 'Badass'…" Woods stopped for a moment, and made a quote sign while grinning apologetic, "…is awake and raving mad. They tied him to the bed, I told you, he's acting crazy. Let's see if we get some answers from him though."

_  


* * *

  
JPOV_

_  
I need to call Bella__, _I thought as I ran along to the place I knew Quil and Embry would wait for me. I stretched my long four limbs and leaped forward quickly taking in the scent of the trees above and the ground under me. Shortly before I reached my pack members, my nostrils smelled the sweet, piercing vampire stench. Without any effort I smelled four different shades of their disgusting scents.

_Yep, four!_ I heard Quil confirm.

_This way, Jake!_ Embry called me impatiently. I followed the track that led us straight to the Resort. We had to stop at the edge of the forest although the scent went further along towards the bungalows.

_Phase back!_ I ordered and already was back into my human form. I pulled Harry Clearwater's shorts over my naked butt and walked to the bungalow to which the stench led us.

_I need to call Bella._ I repeated in my mind.

I knew Quil and Embry were following me. I heard their low muttering.

"That's impossible." Embry hissed furious. "Just walking into Quileute territory… These vamps are clearly going too far."

"It's time to teach them a lesson!" Quil mentioned completely pissed off. We stopped in front of a wooden bungalow. One of its windows was broken. That was where the most concentrated scent came from. I looked around checking the deserted beach. It was twilight already and most of the tourists would be at Dinner right about now. I told Quil and Embry to keep a look-out while I climbed through the window.

I needed to hold my breath for a moment, because the stench was so strong in here, it made me want to gag. My eyes immediately started to burn and I had to close them for a moment and my throat burned like it was on fire as well, disgusting leeches, I thought. The room looked like a tornado hit it. I slowly opened my eyes and I noticed that there had been only one of those bloodsuckers in here and one other male human scent. It looked like that the human put up some fight, a stool and a small table were broken, clothes and books and toiletries were tossed around everywhere in here, it was just a big mess. To my utter amazement I couldn't smell any blood, which meant that at least here in this room the human was not drained of his blood.

"Jake, hurry! Someone's coming." Embry whispered from outside. I knew enough for now and climbed out of the window as swift as I had stepped in. We heard that two people were walking over the crunchy path that led through the bungalow colony. They were quietly talking to each other. But they were too far away to understand the words. I wasn't quite sure but one of the voices kinda reminded me on my father's voice. But why would he come to the Resort? Had his condition improved even more? When I had left him earlier today, I could have sworn that his body was about to allow his wolf genes to kick in. Could it be possible that he had come down here to the Resort all on his own? And who was with him, I wondered?! I would have to find out soon, but right now we had a pretty pressing issue to follow.

As we were leaving the beach behind us, my thoughts were with Bella once again. I so desperately needed to call her. The longing for her was almost causing me pain. I wanted to hear her voice and make sure she was fine. I was getting really nervous about not being able to reach her.

The smell of the human and that of the vampire lead to the woodside where it gathered with the stench of the other three vampires. So probably those bloodsuckers had dragged one of the tourists right out of his room and into the woods. Did they spare him for a later meal? Maybe share him. Or even worse, make him a vampire too? I shuddered at the thought.

"Oh, I'm starved." Quil moaned rubbing over his flat stomach.

"Get a grip!" I snubbed. How could Quil think of food right now?

"But it smells so good…" He whined referring to the delicious flavour drifting over from the restaurant.

"Shut up, Quil!" Embry pushed Quil's back. "Next time you find yourself something to eat before running patrol."

Reaching the forest we phased back to wolfs, and as soon as we did, I informed them what I had detected in the Bungalow room.

"_Ugh."_ Embry commented while Quil still thought about getting some food into his stomach. I kicked my muzzle into his left flank to make him listen to me.

"_Let's follow the track and see where __it leads."_ I suggested and started to run. Quil and Embry followed me but as we were running Quil's wild imagination about a dozen of hot dogs, buttercups and cookies wouldn't stop.

"_Quil!" _I barked at him. _"Stop it already."_ A fierce rumbling in his belly wasn't an adequate answer but at least he stopped thinking about eating.

Soon we reached the borders to Forks Forest which also meant we were near the old treaty line. I could tell Embry was getting nervous. He skidded to a halt which caused Quil to run into him.

_What __shall we do, Jake?_ Embry asked.

_  
Go on, what else? _I paced over the border and impatiently looked over my shoulder. _The Cullen's are gone. Come on! _

I heard myself using the Alpha timbre that came so naturally I didn't even recognize it at first. I winced because it felt absolutely strange and odd to act as their Alpha.

The piercing scent burned our nostrils but it was easy to follow the trail towards south and although the trail was some days old by now we didn't let the attention slide. I felt a strange tingling inside due to the thrill of tracking those leeches. But apart from that I also had Bella's image in my head. I wanted to have it safe for her when she came back to Forks. She shouldn't have any more nightmares. Not if I could help it.

With every step my fours made my heartbeat sang her name.

_Bel-la._

_Bel-la._

_Bel-la._

I had such an un-easy feeling because I just knew by heart she wouldn't be okay over there in Florida. I knew she desperately was waiting to hear from me. Would she be crying? Or would she be angry and rather kick my ass for standing her up? I bet she would look adorable when angry. Her cheeks would be blushing, her eyes would be sparkling and her breathing would increase making her breasts raise and fall …

_JAKE! PLEASE__, would you mind?_ Embry chimed in as my thoughts became too graphic.

_Sorry, __man. _I apologized and finally got a grip on myself again and concentrated really hard on the forest now. There was a smell within those human and vampire scent mix-up I couldn't decode. I couldn't even put a finger on it and this made me just edgy.

_Did you guys get that smell? _ I asked.

_Smells foreign._ Quil said.

_Hu__h?_ I turned my face towards him.

He shook his fur out, put his nose to the ground, sniffed again and confirmed. _Yep, foreign._

Embry just stayed silent taking the new information in. He couldn't make a rhyme on it either.

We ran further along until we finally approached Quinault territory.

_  
Sam?_ I asked in my head. I was sure that he would hear although we didn't see us yet.

_Jacob, where are you?_ Sam answered.

_Right here, nearly crossing the border. We followed the track from La Push Resort. _I informed him. Sam gave me his short status report too: _The vamps ran through and went further south. Two of their latest victims have been found by a search party. One is still alive, we think anyway. _

_Hmmpf._ Vampires wouldn't let a victim survive, I thought, unless they wanted to change it. It wasn't common that so many bloodsuckers would 'live' together. And what would they want in this area?

_I haven't got a clue, either._ Sam answered listening to my thoughts.

_We're gonna run back to La Push now. Don't want to have it unprotected for a longer period of time. _We turned around and started to speed up. We left a wider space between the three of us to cover more of the forest to maybe get the most information possible.

I could tell that I was more than angry at the leeches impertinence. What was the plan of the red haired female? I knew she wanted revenge for her killed mate. Why wouldn't she give a rest now that she knew Bella was safely protected by us and Bella's Ex gone anyway?

What else would she try to come around us?

But then I figured out that she just needed enough companions to outnumber us and to get us busy on different places. Then she would find the hollow to slip through and attack Bella. I stopped dead in my tracks. Why hadn't I seen it before?

Fury ripped through me as I realized the danger Bella was in. I only could hope that Victoria didn't know by now that Bella was in Florida – alone!!! Quil growled aggressively as my thoughts literally ran amok.

It became impossible for me to control the hatred that blazed up inside me. I not only felt hate against the leeches we hunted now, but it was the fury against one bloodsucker in particular that just drove me extremely mad right now and that made me growl and bark with fury. It had been HIM that actually brought Bella into the danger she was in over and over again. If HE had stayed away from her she never would have come in contact with other ones of his species.

Right in the very moment, when I thought to explode even out of my wolf form because of the raging fury and helplessness I felt, my mind produced a very alarming and atrocious image. The terror and pain that washed over me was unbearable. The mighty force of my emotions and the pictures went like a strike through the pack, but this I couldn't see or feel. To sharp was the anguish that crashed me down.

**  


* * *

**

Part II

_  
BPOV_

My heart was pounding heavily in my chest as I awoke under the bright Florida sun. I was lying in a sun chair in Renee's backyard, where I had been falling asleep some time ago. I felt burning hot and freezing cold the same time as the last memories of my disturbing dream vanished. But still I felt the heart wrenching ache in the aftermath. I couldn't even tell what I had been dreaming about I only remembered it wasn't one of my usual dreams. Had I been dreaming about Jake? I couldn't tell. I missed Jake. I missed him so much that by now I almost felt it as real pain to be away from him and not to know how and where he was. I needed to hear his voice, see his laughing and sincere face. I wanted to be near him, letting myself fall into his strong embrace. I terribly longed for him, my honest, ever caring and smiling Jake.

The tucking and burning in my chest became stronger and stronger. Then I became aware that I had Jake's book tightly clutched to my breast and the hard cover pressed into my rib cage. I loosened the grip and I shifted in my sun chair and there it was again, the tingling soreness on the left side of my thorax. Very cautiously my fingers caressed over the place. This caused a new burning but THAT pain was not disturbing me because it was proof that yesterday I really did a silly thing, just as Renee had encouraged me to do. Hidden under my wide shirt was a tattoo as big as my hand. I was grateful for the tenderness of my skin and welcomed the pain as it distracted me a bit from my wild imagination about the things that could be going on in La Push and apart from that it mirrored the pain I felt because of how much I missed Jake.

Today had been quite a hard day for Renee because I still was so irritated about the phone conversation with Charlie that my nervousness had reached a point where it became uncomfortable for me and her. That's why I decided to take a time out in the garden to spare my mother from my brooding or otherwise hysteric like babbling about Jake and our activities in La Push. Even though Renee tried her very best to be a alert listener she eventually got tired since my talking got more and more cryptic since of course I couldn't tell her the full truth.

Not only had Charlie's phone call last night proved me right about my apprehensions that there was something happening in La Push which must be the reason of Jake's absence, also I was scared again and so terrified, that I was freezing and shivering right under the hot Florida sun. Until then I had successfully fought back the panic attack that waited for its appearance.

But meanwhile I imagined the most disturbing pictures. I had tried again to get Jake on the phone for several times during the last hours, as well as I had tried to phone Charlie. But I hadn't been successful. Charlie didn't even answer his cell phone, which was completely unusual for him.

I had been absolutely sure about why Jacob had denied Charlie access to the Reservation. He wanted to have my dad save in Forks, because Victoria was back. Comparing the facts - several missing campers AND Jakes mysterious' disappearing AND that I couldn't reach any member of the pack as well – this could only mean the Wolves were on constant alert for days now. But of course I couldn't tell Charlie anything about this. I had to keep this secret. It was not mine to tell. I knew that Charlie knew I kept the truth from him and that he was disappointed about me. But I had to stay silent even if it caused Charlie pain. It was the only way I could help Jake. I tried not to feel absolutely useless and not to despise my physical weakness. I was sure, that was what Jake would want me to do. But nevertheless I couldn't stop blaming myself for resting my butt in sunny Florida while Jacob and his friends risked their lives to keep my father and the people in La Push and Forks save. If I only was back in Forks, maybe I could be of any use for the pack? At least I could give them more information or any hints that would help them to fight Victoria.

I very strongly loathed this vampire woman. If she wouldn't be roaming around in La Push, Jake could be with me right now. I so had wanted for him to have some happy days here in Florida. Why couldn't that bloodsucker give a rest now that she knew I was safely protected by the Wolves and the Cullen's were gone anyway? What was the reason to come after me still? Adding one and one she must know that I wasn't with Edward anymore? What had I personally done to Victoria? Why did she so badly crave to kill me?I got all angry and fuming and my hands started to tremble because of all the emotions I forced down. I wished I had never met her!I wished I had never attended Edward to that fatal vampire baseball game._ What if_ I had never been attracted to Edward and had stayed away from him like as he had said? It was more then likely that James would have never come near me. And Edward wouldn't have behaved protective about me and wouldn't have triggered James' killer instincts. And of course, then James would never have longed to track me down and kill me and wouldn't have been killed by the Cullen's in the response. And that would mean Victoria wouldn't be so eager to revenge her mate and therefore stay away from La Push. I started to lose myself in those "What if"- and that "wouldn't be"-thoughts until I was so disgusted with me that I felt sick until vomiting.

I heard Renee calling me from the kitchen and I realized that more hours were gone and it was late afternoon by now which meant Phil would be home soon. But because of the time difference Charlie would still be working. Again I dialled the number of his office. The phone rang and rang and rang but Charlie didn't pick up the receiver. Right at the very moment as I wanted to cut the line, Deputy Mark answered the phone. But I only learned that Officer Swan had been leaving for Quinault this morning and was not expected to be back until late afternoon. What would Charlie do in Quinault? It wasn't Forks Police District and the Quinault Police Department would only call him over when something happened that was related to Forks District as well. What if Victoria had planned to lure my dad away from Forks and from the protection the Wolves could give him? Could Victoria be that sadistic to kill my father first, just to let me suffer before she would come to get me? Yes, she could be, I answered my own rhetoric question. My hands became cold and sweaty and my breath started to change into hard, short gasps as the angst that I had fought back successfully until now, sipped through into consciousness.

"Bells, come in! Dinner's ready." Renee was calling me again but I hardly could hear her through my panic-ridden thoughts. I struggled to cover up the panic so Renee wouldn't see my fear and when I finally had a grip on myself again and my facial expression under control I went inside. I entered the house the same time as Phil came in through front door.

"Hey, how's my girl?" He called as he saw me and threw his gym bag into a corner. Before he could take me into a huge bear hug I escaped into the kitchen. Phil laughed and followed me pretending to chase me over the floor.

This game was as old as long Phil was with my Mom and I usually even had fun letting me chase through the house, but not today. I took a seat on the kitchen table and rolled my eyes still trying to act normal. Phil sighed over my denial to play his game and turned to Renee to peck her on her lips.

"Renee told me you got a tattoo yesterday. You wouldn't show me, would you?" He asked expectantly. Different than Charlie Phil was very open about any crazy ideas – probably one of the reasons he loved my mom – and I was happy about him showing honest interest on my new tattoo. I rose from my seat and lifted my shirt. Phil raised his hands and covered his eyes in acted embarrassment as he saw me exposing my belly.

"Is it at a place I want to see?"

I giggled. "It's a harmless place, Phil…"

Phil opened his eyes again and I finally showed him the fresh tattoo on my left rips.

His eyes grew big followed by a whistle through his teeth.

"You surprise me, Bella. I'd expected something more … uhm… girlish from you. Like butterflies, fairies or a tribal tattoo… But this is… well, … never seen anything like this. That's creepy!"

"I really love her tattoo. It fits her well. Don't you think?" Renee proudly rubbed over my back. I dropped my shirt and sat down again.

"I guess, Charlie won't be pleased if he ever finds out that YOU actually encouraged me to do this…" I answered my mom but what I didn't say out loud was: _I hope Charlie still has a change to find out… _

_  


* * *

  
JPOV_

_  
Right in the very moment, when I thought to explode even out of my wolf form because of the raging fury and helplessness I felt, my mind produced a very alarming and atrocious image. The terror and pain that washed over me was unbearable. The mighty force of my emotions and the pictures went like a strike through the pack, but this I couldn't see or feel. To sharp was the anguish that crashed me down._

I heard a rustling and whispering voices in the wind. Someone was talking to me using the wind to pass a message down to me. I heard the words but I didn't understand its meaning. What was the language it was spoken? It sounded so ancient and foreign I couldn't make a connection to any other language I knew. With the message the images crashed down on me: I saw the sharp teeth of an animal predator breaking through the tender neck of a beautiful white bird which at some point I recognized being a swan. And then I understood that the beast was a big black wolf which stared at me with my very own eyes. I gasped horrified and the outburst of pain I felt at those images was agonizing. The cry of the dying bird fired another flash of burning ache right into my already heavily hammering heart and caused it to speed up even more. My legs gave in under me and I fell to my knees. The terror and pain that washed over me was unbearable. I was helplessly lying on the ground, yelping even, as I tried to get rid of the horrible images. Neither did I know where they came from nor what they meant to be, although they were familiar in a strange kind of way.

But finally the whispering voices faded away and the heartbreaking pictures slowly vanished.

Eventually I heard Quil and Embry's shocked panting as well as Leah's and Seth's voices breaking through the veil of painful pictures.

_  
What is it? What's up?_ Leah pushed me with her muzzle into my back and I realized that we all still were in our wolf forms.

_What happened, Jacob?_ She was anxious and watched me with wary eyes, pushing me again to get a quick answer. Her fur stood on end which made her look bigger than she actually was. I could feel and see she was on alert and ready to shield me from whatever might attack me. But there was nothing she could protect me from.

_I __suddenly had the feeling something terrible was happening. Seth felt it too and then we phased and ran to find you. _Leah explained through the mind link as she bent down to me and stared into my eyes.

_We all could see what you saw. _She winced at those words, obviously the same confused as we all were.

_Jeez…_ Embry moaned quietly and shuffled his paws over the ground, as he tried to regain control over his emotions. He snickered and tried to loosen up the tension that lingered over us like a black cloud.

_What a trip! Are you still high from your Vision Quest?_ Quil mentioned sarcastically. Through his mind I saw my father sitting on my side smoking the ancient sacred pipe.

Leah snorted and kicked Quil's flank._ Just because you were high on weed already you're not to tell bullshit, dimwit. _She spat at him.

I wanted to tell them that I was okay and they should not argue but I clearly was not okay and it took me some minutes until I was able to even think straight again.

I searched for an explanation to the pictures in my head but came up with nothing. All I could tell was the deepest feeling - NO, it was more - it was a pure instinctive knowing that I was missing someone special really, really bad. So bad, that it now also hurt physically. My body writhed again without me regaining control over it and I desperately tried to remember whom I was so terribly missing. What would these images try to tell me? Maybe it was a symbolic way to tell me something important? Was it related to Bella? Should I take even more care of her protection else I would be responsible if something bad happened to her? Would it literally break her neck if I failed to track Victoria down?

_  
Get to your feet, Jacob Black!_ I ordered myself and so I got up on my quivering fours. I shook my fur out, stretched my long legs and looked at my friends quite embarrassed. They had seen everything, of course, since we were bound to each other through our linked minds. To what conclusion would they come? My pack members sat around me in a circle, looking at me worried and expectantly as well. I tried to form some coherent thoughts but failed still. In my head the wild chaos of pictures and feelings ran amok.

Leah eventually pulled her lips back and sucked in a sharp breath avoiding to growl which probably was a reaction to my horrid memories.

_Stop it already, Jacob._

But then she jumped to her feet nervously, circling us, breathing in deeply. Our faces turned in unison to our only female wolf.

_What's this smell?_ She demanded to know glaring at us.

_Vampire stink?_ _GAG!_ Embry answered and coughed to cover up his disgust.

_I already figured THAT out, dimwit! _Leah snorted aggressively. _I mean the other one. It's human, but…_ _strange._

She yelped excitedly and pressed her muzzle to the ground taking in the smell of the hiker who – as we knew already - had been dragged away by the leeches.

_They captured him from the Resort__, stole him away from his room._ I told her and let her see the mess inside his room which proved that the stranger had given the leeches a rough fight. _He was still alive when they took him prisoner. _

Leah nodded and hurried along the track. I followed her, curious if she would find out more about the stranger. Leah's brain translated the smell she took in into vivid pictures.

_Young_ She figured out in a fraction of a second and formed a blurred vision of a big slender man in her head.

_Foreign_ She mentioned then and looked back at me. She was irritated though I couldn't understand why. _Are you following me?_

_Yep, because __I utterly trust your nose, Leah. We were curious about this special note in this scent but couldn't figure it out._ I confessed, honestly meaning what I told her. Females had a finer nose. I was sure if someone could find out, then it would be Leah.

Leah huffed, narrowed her eyes to slits and put her muzzle back to the forest ground. Like a swirling spiral her mind produced more pictures: huge snow covered mountains, beautiful green meadows, the nicest blue and pink flowers, wild herbs, white puffy clouds covering a sunny blue sky, a small creek rushing quickly over round stones…

Leah's vibrant images made me forget my own disturbing memories for a while. I connected the foreign scent of the hiker now to this quickly rushing small creek, like smelling it for real.

_Clear water…_ Leah thought as she categorized this smell.

_Clear water_. She repeated again, bewildered, combining now the picture of this small creek with the blurry image of the unknown man. Her nervousness and confusion became stronger and of course she couldn't hinder sharing her emotions through our linked minds.

_Clear water? _Embry started to snicker referring to Leah's last name. Leah ignored him, running further along the track, the indistinct frame of the stranger steady in mind, adoring his scent but fretting about his welfare. She didn't even know who he was. What the hell was going on with her? Was this befuddled she-wolf still Leah?

Something about her demeanour changed. The way she moved her legs became different. More womanly? Was she just swaying her hips? My eyes bulged out and I needed to flank her so I wouldn't stare at her back. Was her body temperature burning up? Her whole body seemed to be so vibrant, glowing even. What happened here?

_What's up with __our she-wolf?_ Quil sneered and his tail wagged excitedly.

_Getting the hots for a stranger, Leah?_ Embry remarked and opened his mouth in a wide wolfish grin.

I turned around at once feeling the Alpha instincts kicking in. I already knew this reaction from this morning when these brain mutts had mocked at Leah. They wouldn't dare to assault their BETA again? I growled furiously and the fur on my back stood on end. The animal in me wanted to fight for its Alpha position and bring those two dorks into submission. Quil and Embry, while growling though, took a few steps back. I bared my teeth and snapped at them aggressively.

Seth snarled warningly at Quil and Embry as he now changed his position from the end of the line and closed up to his sister and me. Still I was up for a fight.

_Stop it, Jake._ Leah stepped between us and gave me a very pissed-off look. _I'm able to defend myself if needed._

Then she walked in front of Quil and Embry and stared them down.

_You,… _she threatened the guys,_ …better keep your mouths shut if it comes to my matters. I'm bored of your lame tries to hit on me. _

She turned around and majestically walked away, thinking:_ I'm way out of your league, dorks._

Her brain produced images I'd never known from Leah. I was used to vivid sexual fantasies from the other pack members if they slipped in their attention and I'm sure all of them knew about mine, but Leah fantasising about ardent embraces with a stranger was so weird it left me stunned.

I recognized how the dynamic within the pack changed. Apart from Seth we all felt a strong pull towards Leah. And that was when Leah finally recognized something was going on with her. She stopped dead in her tracks, glaring at us with a very bellicose look in her eyes. No one of us moved a single inch. _Don't you dare to come any closer. _

She barked at us and disappeared behind a thick tree. We heard a shuffling and rustling that told us about her phasing and getting dressed. When she came into sight again confusion was written all over her face.

"I'm going home." She declared and strode away with large, quick steps. Her hands were balled up into fists and when I made the attempt to follow her, she turned around and snarled at me: "Stay. away!"

I froze and frowned. I was going steady with Bella. I wouldn't grind on Leah. What was she thinking about me?

As soon as she was out of sight I quickly phased and dressed too and then I followed her despite the fact that she wanted to be alone. I had reached her in an instant although she was almost running.

"Leah, wait." I said keeping a proper distance so she wouldn't feel threatened. But she furiously stomped away, speeding up her pace.

"I don't want to talk right now." She said through her gritted teeth.

"You're acting strange. What's up with you?" I asked her curiously. She shook her head, stared at me in disbelief and then shouting at me like I had never heard her before.

"I. don't. know. myself. And now give it a rest and just f*** off."

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**A/N: So, what do you think sofar? Leave me your reviews. **


	17. Time for the Wolves II

**Time of the Wolves**

**  
Part III**

_JPOV_

I'd been on patrol over the night, relieving Quil and Embry from their shift. Now it was the Clearwater's turn to take care of everything for the next couple of hours.

We met at the woodside, being careful about not to be seen from any people. But it was still pre-dawn and to dark for human eyes to have a good sight on things.

Leah rested against a tree while Seth had already phased wolf and tried to get some information from me. Nothing spectacular had happened during my shift and Seth seemed relieved in a way.

_Afraid__, Seth?_ I asked him striking a light note between joking and sincerity to let him know that I would respect if he would be afraid and help him over with.

_No, I'm only worried about Leah. A girl shouldn't __fight vampires. Not even a wolf-girl._ Seth answered frowning.

I could understand his concerns but we both knew Leah too well. She would never stay in the background and wait for everything to be over.

So I said: _She wants to kick some vampire ass, Seth. And she is strong and skilled._ I remembered my fight with her before I went into my second transformation. Seth snickered as I passed the memorized pictures in review.

I turned my wolf face towards Leah. I needed to communicate with her. I wanted to let her know that everything stayed peaceful and she and Seth would probably have a boring but safe patrol. But Leah refused to phase. There I recognized how big I had grown. I even needed to bend down a bit to look into her face. And that's although Leah was bigger then the average girl.

„Go, and finally get this girl on the phone. Maybe you'll stop slobbering after her then!" She said and rolled her eyes. Did she try to act nice or was she pissed-off for real? And how obvious was it that I was worrying myself to death?

"I don't need some more of your fantasies to see, Jacob Black." She mocked and dug her toes into the forest ground. She seemed to be at ease about the stranger's scent now, but still she was nervous in a way and some kind of itchy.

Leah still refused to phase wolf as long as I was in my animal form. She just tapped her foot impatiently to the ground. And then it dawned on me. How numb could I be at all? She wanted to have her thoughts on her own! Damn, I just was so curious what was going on in her head. Maybe I'd be an a$$ and just wait it out?

Who would give in first? Leah? I?

A minute went by, Seth faked a yawn and Leah still wouldn't phase. Why had girls always have to be so freaking stubborn?

I wanted to talk to Bella and needed to get hold on her number, so I finally gave in. I huffed and walked over to a huge tree trunk. I phased back human, dressed and came back within seconds. She was already gone then. Only her silver grey fur glistened in the rising sun as she quickly leaped away.

"Leah! Wait up!" I called after her but I only heard her barking me out. Apparently she was making fun of me, being proud of herself because she had tricked me. Ha. Ha.

"Hell, I don't care what's gotten into her." I mumbled.

I heard her barking again, telling me that she had heard that comment.

I shrugged my shoulders and walked home. I would apologize and try to convince Charlie to give me Bella's phone number. If he turned me down I would achieve the information in a different way. Let's say, I could enter the Swan Residence through Bella's window. I knew she only push it down but never locked it. But If Charlie finds out I would be damned until hell froze over. I would be sooo dead. There must be another way to get the information.

I had been so lost in my thoughts that I had walked from the forest to the beach without even taking care of the location. I shook my head, angry with myself that I had been so inattentive. Irately I stared into the rising sun that was covering the ocean with bright light. Although the peacefulness of the moment should relax me, a cold tremor crept over my back and made me shiver. I had the gut feeling that the following night would bring a change. And I hoped that would mean we could finally take down Victoria and her bunch of stinking conspecifics.

_

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_

Edward's POV  


I still lingered around the house like a nightmarish stalker. I hadn't left Bella unobservant for one single moment during the last days. I don't know what still held me close to her, why I couldn't let go. She was done with me.

I clutched my hand to the silent spot where once had been my human heart. She didn't want me anymore. While listening to Bella talking with her mother, I learned that Bella's decision was made. So I should finally take my leave. But I still hesitated.

Why did I bother at all? It had been me who had left her. I broke up with her first. I couldn't remind me often enough about that fact, but it hurt that she really lived her life up. Deep inside I had expected, then hoped she would be waiting for me. But the girl I watched from my post could that really be Isabella Swan I had thought to know?

How much of that unsure, clumsy Bella was she anyway? Thanks to the stalking I had heard and seen so much of a young woman that was completely different from that shy, insecure girl that she had been when she had been with me. Here in Jacksonville I had watched a girl that was open for new people, a girl that could talk to them without blushing. Apart from her grieving hours when she was worried about the wolf boy, there were Phil and Renee who made her laugh and distracted her from any menacing. There where silent times, when she was thinking a lot. And then like a lightening she hopped from her bed, filled with energy and up to any of Renee's crazy ideas.

I was still in shock about Bella walking without hesitation into this tattoo studio, discussing her idea about the motive she had sketched by herself and that she wanted to have inked into her skin. There had neither been fear of pain nor shyness about exposing her body. Without batting an eyelid she finally ordered the tattoo artist to start his work. At least he had done his job with care and the drawing was perfectly transformed from the sketch block into a tremendous piece of tattoo art on her body.

I couldn't get warm with this kind of body art people liked nowadays. Would she have done anything like that when she still would have been with me? I just wondered what this wolf boy would say about that tattoo. I judged him silly enough to like her crazy way to show her affection. I snorted at the word 'boy' since it reminded me on this strange encounter two nights ago. Black visibly was no boy anymore. His transformation into a werewolf had made him a huge, muscle packed freak.

The mere thought about the wolf made me fury. _He's my worst natural enemy,_ I thought. And Bella just switched from the one monster to the next. Why did this girl so much lack of self preservation? To hang out with a teenage werewolf! How careless could she be? At least I had always been in control around her, years and years of practice had made it possible for me to be close to humans and then even close to her, my singer. How controlled was Black?

I felt jealousy and I wanted to fight him. Would the wolf be strong enough to stand a fight with me? Could he probably even beat me? Which one of us would be the strongest?

I concentrated now on a conversation between Renee and Phil as they were snuggling at the couch, having some coffee.

I listened to Renee whispering to her husband: "Bella's finally becoming the girl again she has been before she left for Forks."

And Phil answered: "Thank God! Clumsiness AND lacking self-confidence make a bad combination. I never understood what made her so unsure. I had the feeling she liked the new school and the new people…"

Renee sighed. "It's a hard time being teenager. I don't want this time back for myself."

Phil laughed. "Me neither."

The note in Renee's voice changed as she now said: "It was as if she had been under a spell. She'd been denying everything that made her being Bella. And…" She made a pause straining after effect. "If you ask me, there was something mysterious about that Edward in a way…" Renee mumbled but thanks to my supernatural hearing I understood her fully well. I huffed in my tree.

Phil burst into laughter. "You, and your silly ideas. You're expecting conspiracy behind everything."

Renee stuck her tongue out at him. "Anyways. She seems to get over this now. She is in love with Billy's son. You know, Billy Black from the Reservation, I already told you about him. She used to play with his kids when she was a little girl."

"I just hope she doesn't fall so hard again, when this crush ends." Phil remarked thoughtfully. "I know first love and everything…, but don't you agree that Bella quite overreacted when this Edward broke up with her?"

"She's like her father, when it comes to that. Charlie hasn't found himself a new wife in sixteen years. I'm glad Bella made it through within a couple of months." Renee frowned at the unpleasant memories that crossed her mind. And I flinched at the pictures she transmitted.

I hadn't done Bella any good. Not enough that I was a dangerous creature by nature, my presence had even blocked her self-confidence and sucked the personality out of her. Energy sucker - vampire par excellence!

I really should go now and finally let her alone. Bella was literally walking into the right direction. I didn't need to linger on here. I peeked into her window. Bella was busy trying to call her father and half of the La Push population again. I was curious myself what was going on there and why she didn't reach anyone. From the phone talk with her father yesterday I already knew, that Jake had denied Charlie Swan access to the Reservation.

_Jacob Black messes up big time nowadays, _I thought. First he stood up on Swan's daughter and then he got rebellious against Swan himself.

A sneer appeared on my face. Chief Swan would kick Black's a$$, I was absolutely sure about that. Black had seen his Bella for the longest time. Swan would lock her up like Rapunzel.

Suddenly loud music disturbed my jealous brooding. Did they start their Karaoke session? Phil had suggested Karaoke at lunch time. I sighed heavily. Alice and Emmett had loved to sing Karaoke since its invention. I remembered a lot of times when they had tried to excel each other. And I and Jasper usually had left for hunting, because neither he nor I would make a fool out of themselves. I became aware how much I actually missed my family. I really should go back and take part on their lives again. I belonged to my kind of people. And they would all be thrilled to finally have me back. All those ranting and brooding had affected them too, maybe it wasn't a bad idea to talk some things out with them?

I refused listening to Phil's crazy roaring into the micro and just went on clinging to my thoughts. I also refused to pay attention to the ring of their phone about half an hour later until my fine ears heard the husky voice through the receiver: "Hello. I'm Jacob Black. I need to talk to Bella!"

_  


* * *

_

_Almighty Author's POV_

Jacob was standing in his kitchen, waiting for someone to pick up the phone. It rang and rang and rang. It had been Angela who finally had given him Bella's phone number, after he couldn't reach Charlie Swan for the entire day.

As his call was answered he instinctively held the phone an arm length away from his ear. Music blared through the receiver in an ear deafening volume and Jacob was afraid for his eardrums to tear apart.

"What the heck?" He muttered to himself and then he said louder: "Hello?"

"Who's there?" The person on the phone repeated patiently. Had he missed her first question? Her voice entirely sounded like an older copy of Bells.

"I am Jacob Black. I need to talk to Bella!" Jacob introduced himself. His voice was suddenly very thick and husky and a lump formed in his throat. Would Bella still want to talk with him?

"Jacob Black?" The voice on the other end of the line was pleased and somehow happy to have him on the line. "Bella so desperately waits for your phone call…" She informed him.

Jacob was relieved at once.

"I'm Renee, by the way." Bella's mother said and then he heard her calling for Bella but she couldn't get through the booming music. Then a man was shouting and roaring like a madman and Jacob heard his Bella laughing. It was a free, happy and infectious laughter and he smiled because of it.

"I'm sorry, Jacob. Bella doesn't hear me at all. They are doing Karaoke,…"

"Karaoke?" Jacob asked perplexed. He couldn't imagine Bella singing out loud.

"I need to go over and bring her to the phone. Wait a moment…"

Renee left and he stood in his kitchen, receiver in hand, waiting and listening to the goosebumps causing voice.

"Bella! It's Jacob!" Renee was screaming over the noise. When Bella heard the news she froze for a moment. But then she dropped her micro and immediately headed straight over to the phone grabbing for the receiver.

"Jake,…" She whispered breathless and Jacob blended out the music in the background to only concentrate on her voice. But before he could say 'Hello', Renee yelled out for him to hear: "Jacob, don't let her tell you she's a bad singer. Phil never ever has a chance against her. She is terrific!"

"Argh. Mom, be quiet!" Bella snapped embarrassed.

Jacob chuckled inaudibly and decided to like Bella's mother.

"This has been really you, Bells?" He asked nevertheless. "Your voice is stunning." He told her, still surprised.

"I didn't know you can sing."

Bella's heart was beating so very fast. His voice brought butterflies alive in her stomach.

"There're some things you don't know about me yet…" She bantered. Jacob was grinning. He liked getting teased by her. For a moment everything felt like if they were having a telephone conversation between La Push and Forks.

But only moments later Bella's thoughts were running wild, now that she was able to speak with him. She finally had a hold on him. She felt relief washing over her, but still there was so much she needed to know from him. And so much she had to tell him as well. The idea to forget all the fearsome things they needed to talk about was alluring. And the wish to pretend nothing dangerous was hovering over them was strong. But it wouldn't help to run from reality.

Jacob shook his head and rubbed over his eyes. The day had its toll on him. He hadn't slept as long as he better should have. Knowing that Bella maybe was in danger didn't help him to sleep. And the situation with the ranting leeches made the young man restless. As heavy as he felt the obligation placed on him, as ready as only could be he was for the fight that would erase those filthy bloodsuckers from the earth.

"Jake, why didn't you come?" Bella now asked, not being able to hide her disappointment, even though she trusted him that he had his plausible reason to stay away. Jacob understood that she was disappointed and although nothing of the things that happened had been his fault he felt responsible.

There fell an awkward silence between the two of them.

The music was turned off and Renee said: "I leave you two alone. I'm up in my room."

"Jake? Where have you been?" Bella repeated and he noted now the thoroughly covered fear in her voice. What did she know already?

"Uhm, I…" Jacob sighed and closed his eyes. "I couldn't come on Saturday because something happened… to me."

On the other end of the line Bella gasped for air, trying not to panic. She wanted to form words, but her voice refused its service.

"I've been on patrol Friday night. On my way back home I passed out and when I awoke again it was two days later." Jacob pulled his eyebrows together as he went on further: "I went through another transformation, Bells."

Bella was absolutely taken aback. "Oh, I… ah…." She bit her lip, as she did so often. "Jake, I didn't know. I am so sorry."

Tears were spilling from her eyes as she imagined him writhing in pain. That was how she thought the altering of his body must have been. "Did it hurt like first time?"

"It was… different." Jacob said hesitating. He still wasn't ready to talk about this experience. He would tell her, but not now. Not over the phone. But he felt obliged to prepare her that his body had changed so much. He was worried whether she would still feel attracted to him.

"I look different now, Bells."

She stayed silent.

He wondered, why she took this confession almost too easy, not saying a word. He couldn't know that her thoughts were running wild. He put back his own feeling of uncertainty, because he was so horrified knowing her unprotected in Jacksonville. And it killed him that he didn't know how to turn the situation out well for both – keep her safe and fulfil his obligation to protect the Tribe. Victoria and her bunch of stinking leeches had stayed within the Olympic Peninsula until now. There was no evidence that she knew where Bella was located right now.

Nevertheless he instructed Bella:

"Bella, you need to keep your window locked." He hurried to say. "Understand that? Securely locked! And never go alone anywhere. Stay close to your mom and Phil." Jacob pressed with as much force as he dared without scaring her to death. He dropped his head to the wall.

Bella instead thought he was talking about his encounter with Edward two nights ago. She didn't know that Jacob worried for her safety because of Victoria.

"But he's gone, Jake." Bella wanted to sound strong and sure, but her voice skipped an octave and got tiny due to the emotions she experienced again. Jacob heard her shuffling around and how her breathing became ragged. His heart stopped beating for a moment and then took up a forceful speed.

"I told him to go. He doesn't come back." Bella whispered into the receiver, so hushed Jacob hardly could understand her even with his fine wolf hearing.

"What? Who is gone?" He almost shouted but knowing at once there was only one 'he' she would mention in that way.

"Cullen came to you?" Jacob rumbled and smacked his hand to the door frame.

"Don't you remember? You came to me through my dream. You scared Edward away." Bella was absolutely sure what she was talking about and there were no doubts for her that it was the truth. Jacob held onto the receiver with mighty force. The material began to crack. Jacob ever so hard struggled for self-control.

„Jake?" Bella whispered. „Jake, are you ok?"

„No, I'm not." He squeezed his eyes tightly shut and tried to get his breathing steady again. "Give me a moment. Please"

"He wouldn't harm me, Jacob." Bella tried to assure him. "You don't need to worry about that."

"I don't trust leeches, Bells. That's not in my nature." Jacob growled.

Bella rushed on saying: "You were here as well, Jake. I saw you. I thought I was dreaming. But in the morning I realized it has been no dream at all but reality."

Though Bella couldn't find a logical explanation how Jacob made himself move without a physical body, she just accepted that he obviously seemed to have special abilities. For now she didn't question how he did it and why. She just wanted to reassure Jacob that she was still true to him.

He listened to her, stunned and silent. Jacob knew now what she was talking about. He remembered using his spiritual body to see her. He remembered also how he had pushed Edward away and when the bloodsucker didn't give in, how he had knocked him to the ground.

"I know what you look like now. You've grown, your hair is longer and your body is…." Bella blushed and bit her lower lip. She refused to mention that his spirit had only worn a loincloth.

"You were here, Jake. And Edward, too. I have evidence… And I told him to go. I told him … to go."

She remembered how safe and warm she had felt when Jacob had been sitting at her side over the rest of the night and how empty and cold the room has been when she awoke alone in the morning. Suddenly all of her fears and nightmares came crushing upon her and she began weeping.

Jacob was confused. Her tears hurt. Why would she cry so suddenly? Did she regret that she had sent Edward Cullen away?

The leech was a factor of insecurity that he had completely left out when planning about how to keep Bella safe. But what was Cullen up to? What were his plans?

"Would you rather you were with him again?" He asked. His voice was strained and hollow. But he needed to know!

She should never have gone to Jacksonville. Would he lose her now?

"No, Jacob! No!" She said still crying but very resolute.

"I wanted to have YOU here with me, but instead everything went wrong. Jake, I miss you so much." Bella's crying became even more frantic and Jacob hated that all he could do was helplessly listening to it, instead of taking her in his arms.

"I love you, Jake. And you should be here by now and not risking your life to kill Victoria…" She was so badly crying, but there was a new confidence in her voice he hadn't heard before. But what could he say to ease her? How could he give her calm and comfort when he himself was so upset about the flow of things? Her confession left a warm feeling inside. She had never sounded so sure about her feelings.

"I miss you too, Bells." He wanted to enjoy the feeling of being in love but knowing that he couldn't be with her now because of those vampires, left him seething and the anger quickly eliminated the happiness. Jacob was so very close to letting himself get carried away by his temper. His entire frame was shaking.

"This is so messed up." He cursed. "Victoria's killing spree here and then whatever Cullen is up to do over there in Jacksonville." Jacob kicked the wall again leaving a new dent in it. His father wouldn't be pleased when he went on destroying the house.

"I'm so sorry, Bells. I didn't mean to stand up on you. I wouldn't have if I could have done anything against it…"

"So my apprehensions were right? Victoria is back? And this is the reason why you forced Charlie to stay away from the Reservation?" Bella demanded to know. Her crying eventually stopped.

"Yes, Victoria is back. And I only told your father to stay away for his own safety."

"I've expected nothing different from you, Jake. When Charlie told me yesterday you denied him access to La Push I knew it was only because of Victoria."

Jacob thought about what exactly to tell her and decided to tell her the full truth. She would be scared though but maybe it would be easier to face the facts if she knew what she, what they, had to deal with.

"It isn't easy to get a grip on that vampire. She is not alone. There are more of those leeches."

"We don't know for sure but they seem to kidnap people and change them. The number of those bloodsuckers is getting bigger. There are already two confirmed deaths alone in this area. Luckily they only hunt between Quinault and La Push for now. Let's hope they stay away from Forks and that we finish them ASAP before more people get killed!!!!!" The more Jacob spoke, the deeper his voice became because of his anger.

Bella got dizzy when she heard the facts. "Dad's gone to Quinault this morning. I couldn't get him on the phone whole day long." Though she wanted to scream, she hushed her voice in the last moment, careful not to make Renee alert.

"Sam's watching over the Quinault Reservation with Paul and Jared. I'll tell Sam about your Dad. He's having a look out on him." Jacob tried to sound solid and firm, but he almost couldn't hold back cussing and swearing. Everything that could possibly go wrong went wrong. It was as if they were put under a curse.

"Seth and Leah are on patrol right now here in La Push. We will try to encircle Victoria and the other bloodsuckers and then we will kill them." Jacob freely discussed the strategy with Bella.

Bella clutched to the phone for her dear life.

"You're not fighting together?" She asked stomaching the fact that Sam, Jared and Paul were in Quinault.

"We split up to cover a bigger area."

Though it sounded reasonable, Bella didn't like it.

Jacob was getting nervous. He turned around and watched the afternoon sun. The strange feeling in his guts increased.

"Bella, I need to go now. The guys and Leah are waiting for me. I've got the feeling we eventually will be successful this night."

He sighed deeply and brought the receiver very close to his lips. "I love you too, Bells." He said. He wanted to have her back. Hold her, kiss her, feel her. "I will make sure, Victoria can't lay a hand on you."

His deep sonorous voice was vibrating from his suppressed growling and sent a tingling sensation through Bella's body. "You need to make sure that you're never going alone anywhere. You don't know if Cullen is still around."

"But Edward wouldn't harm me, Jacob. That's not like him." Bella answered.

"Bells." Jacob pleaded. "Just be careful. I don't want anything bad happen to you."

"Okay. But you be careful too, Jacob."

She heard in his voice that he was smiling all over his face. "Don't worry, Bells. I'll try my very best. Can't wait to see you again."

"I'll be back on Saturday."

"And I'll be there to pick you up. Love you, Bells."

"Love you too, Jake. Be safe!"

**  


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**

Part III

_Author's POV_

Charlie Swan buried his face in his hands. He was still sitting in Chief Woods office and was dead tired by now. The day had been long and he should be home already. But still there's one last task waiting for him. Chief Woods would pick him up in a few minutes to visit the unknown man, a.k.a. the healing wonder, in the hospital.

The two men had been up to drive over at some time around noon right after the hospital informed them that the stranger was awake and they could drop by. But halfway there Chief Woods got an urgent call, that a new victim had been found. He immediately turned the car and headed towards Quinault Forest.

Visibly shaken they had gathered all evidence they could get and brought the corpse to the morgue. She had been young, not much older then Chief Swan's daughter Bella. And just like on the other dead people the men found several bite marks, bruises and bad injuries. Whoever did this to the girl, Swan just hoped for her she hadn't suffered for long. Swan felt thankful knowing Bella save with her mother in Florida.

An hour later they arrived at Quinault hospital which was even smaller than that in Forks. The doctor welcomed the Police Officers and informed them about the patient's condition.

"He's awake for a couple of hours. His injuries are healed, which is impressive, given to the bad condition when he came in. By now he is running a fever and is coughing and sneezing. But else he's fine, apart from his temper tantrums." The doctor rolled his eyes, giving away his unspoken thoughts, and led them to the patient's room and opened the door.

A big slender man with blond hair and intriguing piercing blue eyes was standing at the window staring at the door. As they came in he startled up and crouched into a defensive position.

When he saw who came in, he returned to his upright position but watched the intruders through narrowed eyes.

"Seems to be a stress reaction, happens whenever someone enters the room. He doesn't talk at all. We still don't know if he even remembers what happened to him let alone his own name." The doctor whispered and left the room. The patient stared after the doctor, visibly annoyed.

Chief Swan flashed a smile in the attempt to calm the man and introduced himself: "Chief Swan. Forks Police Department." Then he showed at the sturdy man at his side: "This is Chief Woods, Quinault Tribal Police."

The patient stepped away from the window and came towards the men. His features were observant and there was a fiery and wary glow in his eyes. And though he was of slender built his body was well-toned, bearing witness to an active, sportive life-style. His eyes lingered on them, checking out if they were friend or enemy. He absolutely didn't care that he was wearing only the weird hospital gown. Actually people looked silly in this kind of clothes but he absolutely didn't.

"Michel." The patient said eventually, his chin raised and arms crossed over his chest.

"Excuse me?" Chief Swan answered. He didn't understand what the patient had been saying.

"Michel. My name is Michel Burkhardt." The man repeated. His voice was deep and melodic, his accent foreign. It gave the spoken words a rough, throaty sound. He seemed to be of clear brain as he leaned towards the Officers awaiting their questions.

"We need your help, Mr. Burkhardt." Swan tried to get the foreign name fluently over his lips, but failed. He smiled apologizing.

"We found several corpses and we need to find out if there's any connection between your case and them. You allege being kidnapped?" Chief Woods chimed in, taking a seat on the table at the window.

Michel Burkhardt's faced darkened as he was reminded at the disgusting experience.

"I don't know if I'm of much use, Chief Swan. My memories are blurry and there's not much I remember." He apologized and sat down on the bed. Several different emotions rushed through him: fear, anger, confusion, hate. His muscles were flexed as if ready to jump at any moment.

His accent was so heavy the Officer's could hardly understand was he was saying and they asked him from time to time to repeat a sentence or a word, which he patiently and amused did.

Mr. Burkhardt told them a story that seemed ridiculous. He talked about how he had been attacked by a man who had come into his rented room in La Push Resort and how the man got the better of him and dragged him away into the forest. He told furthermore how strange and cold the kidnapper's body had been and about a sweet sugary scent he had smelled on the strangers clothes as he had been carried away.

"Then the man dropped me to the ground. I didn't know where I was. There were four people and he standing around me. I don't know for sure but it seemed it were a woman, two younger men and a girl. They were looking at me as if I was something delicious to eat and the woman could hardly hold them back to attack me." Burkhardt shuddered at the unpleasant memory and then came to the end of his odd story. "When I tried to escape they beat the living hell out of me. From that moment on until the moment I woke up here in this hospital, I can't remember anything."

Chief Woods now asked for further details. How did the people exactly look like? On which day Mr. Burkhardt had been kidnapped? Had he been the only victim or had there been other people as well?

After having recorded all information Mr. Burkhardt could give, the two Officer's walked out of the room and evaluated the conversation.

"If you ask me, that's the weirdest story I have ever heard." Chief Woods said, tapping his forehead. "Who could be able to carry this guy over miles?" He said, emphasising the "this" referring to Burkhardt's buff body.

Chief Swan wagged his head and recalled Burkhardt's face. "But he didn't lie either. I know when someone is lying at me." He scratched his head. The man's frank features reminded him at someone else, who had never lied at him. The sheer thought of Jacob Black made his blood boil in an instant. Swan curled his lips into a small smile. Finally he had an excuse to go to the Reservation, ignorantly passing Jacob's ban. He wouldn't let himself get carried away with his emotions but he had a job to do. And he would do what was to the best of his belief. For that reason Chief Swan suggested: "Let's bring Burkhardt back to La Push and inspect his room. I already did, but it's always better to check for a second time. Maybe he remembers some more details. We can't keep him in custody anyway. And he's in good condition. He doesn't need to stay in hospital anymore."

An hour later they drove over to La Push. Michel Burkhardt was sitting in Chief Swan's police car. Chief Woods followed in his cruiser. Chief Swan watched his passanger through the rear-view mirror. Obviously the man was more then nervous. His eyes were flitting from the street to the forest, glaring into the woods as if he was searching for something. The day was fading, it got dark outside. Chief Swan felt uncomfortable having Burkhardt sitting in the back seat though he didn't do anything to threaten Swan. He just kept staring into the nightfall, clenching his fists and muttering in his language to himself. A strange, hazardous aura seemed to emanate from the man, but Chief Swan couldn't tell what alarmed him.

After the two hours ride they passed Forks and reached La Push Resort. It was pitch dark by now. Only the car shed light to the road. He stopped the car in front of the bungalows and told Burkhardt to get out of the car.

The moon rose over the forest, which caused Chief Woods to shift anxiously.

"This is a bad night." He said under his breath as he saw the moon glowing in a strange orange-red light.

Chief Swan frowned and glanced at his colleague. "What?" He mouthed.

"THIS moon…" Woods nodded towards the celestial body. "…is a bad omen. Something is going to happen tonight."

"Ah, come on!" Chief Swan faked a grin and though he felt a cold chill run over his back, he ignored Woods warning. "That's superstition."

Chief Swan led the way and unsealed the door to Burkhardt's room. Then he invited Burkhardt to walk in first. Burkhardt looked around and his eyes bulged as he saw the mayhem. He started talking to himself again, stomping through the room. He picked up his scattered belongings and dropped them again, while he was getting angrier and angrier. Eventually he stopped his ranting, stood stark and stiff and flared his nostrils. He took in a deep breath and a second one and then a third. Bending forward he narrowed his eyes and glared out of the broken window into the dark night.

"What's up, Mr. Burkhardt?" Chief Woods asked and stared out of the window himself. He wasn't sure, but was there someone moving in the dark shadows?

A deep growl erupted from Burkhardt's throat as if he was reacting to a challenge. His eyes lost all humanity and with one fluid motion he jumped head first through the broken window pane.

"Freeze!" Woods shouted but the man merged with the shadows and disappeared in the darkness.

"Well, that's just great!" Chief Swan groaned absolutely taken aback.

"Did the Doctor mention anything about his mental condition?" He asked dumbfounded.

Woods produced his pistol and walked to the door. "I told you, a red moon is a bad omen. And now, let's go and better find him."

_

* * *

_

Edward's POV

I should have left when hearing Jacob Black's voice through the phone. Instead I still stayed hidden in the tree, listening to Bella's conversation with him, feeling the hurt perfusing my bones. I stayed nonetheless. And I suffered. I am a masochist. _A sick, masochistic lion._ The line echoed in my head, a ridiculous cacophony of a lost love requiem.

I had registered every word of the warning Jacob passed on to Bella. How dumb was the boy anyway? What did he know about my species? He should know better and that there was nothing that could hold back the vampire from his prey. But I had to correct myself seconds later. He knew very well and was grimly determined to kill Victoria.

I should have been aware of the fact that she would eventually come back to revenge her mate. It had been the Cullen's who killed James. Forks had been the location she knew we lived in. Therefore she returned here. And she wanted to kill Bella for revenge. Mate for a mate. I sighed. It was our fault and I had left Bella unprotected, not thinking that there could be any danger for her once I would be gone. I had just wanted for her to live a human life without any supernatural interference.

Instead of being jealous of Jacob Black I should better inform my family about Victoria's return. But I hesitated again. I remembered in very clear detail Carlisle's warning us not going to interfere with Bella and the people of Forks and La Push anymore. Also I remembered the vivid pictures of Alice' vision and it made me even more wary about contacting Bella again. When I had been brooding at my family's new house in Germany I of couse had heard their discussions about the heritage that was carried by Quileute Tribe. Though giving a damn about their arguing, my vampire brain had saved all information for later access.

I really didn't know what to do – a rare occasion which didn't happen so very often before in my immortal life. Should I tell Carlisle about Victoria? What would he say? Black had told Bella that Victoria wasn't alone. How many vampires had Victoria gathered and where did those vampires come from? How many Quileute wolves where they? Could they successfully fight and win over Victoria? Would they need help?

Remembering Ephraim Black's demeanour 70 years ago I doubted that the Quileutes would accept help from us. Apart from being natural enemies, our presence had triggered the return of the Wolves.

Occasionally I snorted when I heard Black ranting against me though I had to give him credit for not underestimating me. Despite the fact that he couldn't know for sure if I was still hanging around near Bella he almost expected that I did so. Was I so easy to read? But then I was stunned by Bella's trust into my sanity. I bet she wouldn't trust me anymore once she knew I was stalking her and even forged plans of how to get her back. But how far was I willing to go to reach my goal? What were my intentions anyway? I didn't know by myself.

As soon as the phone conversation ended Bella was running up the stairs into her room. From the spot I was sitting I couldn't see what she was doing but I overheard another phone talk and minutes later she was arguing with her mother and flitting through the house like a dervish.

"You've been barely here, Bella. You just can't leave already." Renee said surprised about Bella's sudden activity.

A door snapped and then I heard Bella begging: "I need to go, Mom. Please, you must understand."

From my observation point I saw Bella walking downstairs again, followed by a nervous Renee. Renee stopped Bella from running around. "We haven't seen us in months, I'm begging you. Don't go yet."

"There's no return. I already bought a ticket home, Mom. I'm sorry. Please, don't be mad at me. It's just…"

When did she buy that ticket? What did I miss?

"I can't stay away any longer. I want to be back… home." Bella's voice travelled a small path between desperation and hope.

"You are home, Bella." I could tell that Renee was sad that Bella wanted to leave already. But she didn't bear any grudges.

"I don't want to hurt you, Mom, but Forks is my home now. Jacksonville isn't home for me. I want to go back. I need to go back."

Renee sighed, knowing she had lost the discussion.

"When is your departure?"

"In about 2 hours. I was lucky to get one of the last tickets and I really need to leave now, so I will catch the plane in time."

Bella closed her bag and embraced her Mom.

"Thank you, Mom. For everything you've done for me…"

Renee grabbed her car keys and shouted for Phil to come down.

"We are taking you to the airport. You don't need to go by yourself."

I didn't like Bella going back to Forks and not only because of the dangerous situation with Victoria. I hated it and I would rather she stayed here with her mother than to go back to him. But the least I could do was taking care of her safety as if she still belonged with me, as long as she wasn't back under the protection of the Quileute Wolves.

I followed them to the airport and as soon as I knew which airplane Bella was going to take I bought a ticket for myself, willing to pay any price as long as I could be with her in the same plane. I stayed as far away from her as necessary, but as close as I dared, hiding my face under my hoodie and also making sure that not one single inch of my skin could be seen by anyone. Renee and Phil hugged Bella and said their 'Good-byes' as she walked into the security area for the check-in. While I followed her still keeping a safe distance between us my cell phone buzzed and I quickly pulled it out of my pocket.

"Alice." I whispered so quietly I wouldn't be heard by human ears.

"Don't interfere, Edward." She said. "Stay away from Bella!"

* * *

**A/N: I'm sorry for changing the POV's so often. I'm experimenting with the third persons POV. I like it a lot for special occasions. What do you think?**


	18. Chapter 16

**Time of the Wolves**

**Part III**

_JPOV_

I heard my motorbike roar through La Push, then it stopped at our house and when the door opened, my dad walked in on his very own two strong legs. I believe my mouth fell open as I saw him. He had changed so much within the last hours since I had last seen him. The strong wolf genes had done an amazing wonder. Not only was he walking, he looked at least ten years younger and as healthy as I had never known him. The kingly aura that had surrounded him since I had been back from my Vision Quest had increased even more.

"Dad." I croaked. I wanted to ask him so many questions.

"Later, Jacob!" He said, pointing to the darkness outside.

"I know, you feel it, Jacob." His eyes locked with mine. "I can feel it, too. Tonight is the night!"

His eyes darkened a bit. I could see the sorrow, but much more I saw the trust he had into me, into our pack, into our abilities.

He encouraged me then: "You will know what to do, Jacob. Your instincts will lead you, our ancestors will guide you."

Dad wished me good luck. "Come back safe, Jake." He said, pressing me to his chest in a manly hug.

And with that I slipped out of the door and walked to the cliff, were I would meet with the pack in a couple of minutes. I stood on the highest spot of the cliff, watching the turbulent water breaking at the rocks, while thinking about a successful battle plan.

We must take the bloodsuckers by surprise. Not an easy thing to do speaking of the only species with equal hearing, sight and strength. I wasn't fooling myself. We didn't have any experiences of how to fight vampires nor could one of the Elders tell us how their grandfathers had fought the enemy. But I trusted that we would defeat them and I would lead my pack back home and each and every one of them alive.

I felt like a chief leading his warriors into war and in fact I was. But it wasn't a war from men to men but from species to species within a world of innocent.

This wouldn't be the easy kill we had with Laurent, who had been outnumbered by us. Since this time it would be an equal number of wolves and vampires we must act wise AND use the very first chance to overwhelm and kill them. We needed to make sure that this filthy bunch of stinking vampires never had a chance to split into different groups and attack from different sides. Would it be possible for us to encircle them? Or would it be more effective to fight in a line? The more I was thinking the clearer the strategy got.

We would use Leah's abilities to run as fast as the winds. She covered miles in seconds and would know first, when the enemy set food on our lands. As soon as she would now, it would be Embry's turn. He always had a good feeling of where to search and find tracks and followed even the faintest and most faded once with utter reliability. He would tell us where to find the vampires. Using then Quil's perfect hiding abilities we would spy out their number. Quil could veil himself so perfectly he almost became invincible, merging with the forest. Seth, being our smallest wolf, climbed and jumped over rocks and trees trunks moving as swiftly as the forest spirits. Though I didn't like this idea at all he would be perfect to lure them to a place where we could encircle and and finally attack them. And since I was the tallest and strongest, I would find their strongest and most skilled fighter and kill him first.

I heard my pack members walking up the path to the cliff. First were Seth and Leah to arrive, Quil and Embry followed soon after. We sat down at the cliff so we could watch the dark forest without being easy to see.

It was pitch dark by now and even though the moon stood over the forest, he didn't enlighten the earth as the moon usually gave light. His colour was strange. I hadn't seen a red moon before.

"A red moon." I whispered to myself as I stared into the sky. "A blood moon!" I felt the pack's eyes on me. I remembered that in our legends the red moon was a symbol for an upcoming fight.

"So this is it." I said. Grim determination and finality deepened my voice. "Tonight is the night!" I repeated my father's words and now understood the strange feeling in my guts I had all day long.

We talked through the tactic I had thought of. Each of them brought in own ideas and then we were ready for the fight.

I didn't know where it came from but suddenly from very deep in my stomach a cry rose. It was a piercing and thrilling battle cry old as our Quileute Tribe and once used to frighten the enemy to his bones. My pack members joined the battle cry and when it ended we found us stomping our feet to the ground just like our ancestors once did. One by one we phased and then we were ready for the battle to begin.

**  


* * *

**

**Part IV**

_  
BPOV_

I leaned back in my seat. I had four more hours of flight time ahead of me and I was much too anxious to grab some sleep. It was still deep in the middle of the night and when I had been walking through the airplane to work my legs all I saw was huddled passengers sleeping. Only two or three people were awake just like me.

Different to my outbound-flight to Jacksonville, this time I wasn't desperate crying. Instead I was kind of furious. I was so angry, imagining vicious deaths for Victoria and consorts. I would so love to erase this nightmare of a vampire female from earth by myself.

I really trusted the wolves that they could finish the vampires. But much more I wished that could help by me own hands. Everything I knew about vampires I had already told them. There was nothing more I could do now. I despised my human weakness that made it impossible to go into real action.

I was stricken with fear, sorrow and aggressiveness. How did Emily ever deal with the knowledge that her boyfriend was out in the woods risking his life to protect people? Had she learned to live with it? Or was she apprehensively waiting for Sam to come back, despite her composure. Did she just perfectly hide the sorrow or what was it that made her so confident that they would always ever come back?

I stifled a groan and pulled my jacket over my head. I was stuck for four more hours in this airplane, unable to distract myself, unable to escape from my angst. Before I had left Jacksonville, I had asked Renee to tell Charlie he should pick me up at Port Angeles Airport. My scheduled time of arrival was at six in the morning, a time where Charlie usually was awake already and ready to go to his office. But what if Renee wouldn't be able to reach Charlie? My stomach dropped and started to hurt. What if something terrible had happened to him? What if Victoria already had laid hands on him before the wolves did even know where to strike?

"Miss? Are you alright?" I startled as the stewardess approached me. For a moment I stared at her blankly only to find myself with my knees pulled up to my chest, rocking back and forth in my seat like a psycho. My face turned crimson.

"I'm sorry. Everything is ok." I told the woman and forced a smile upon my face. I had become such a freak, losing my composure over and over again, even in public. Who in hell had meant to pour out Pandora's Box over me? I hadn't been this kind of shy, angsty girl when I was younger. What had changed that?

The stewardess handed me a blanket which I pulled over me. I tried to calm down and to forget the fear for a moment. The wolves had killed Laurent within seconds. I banked on their strength and swiftness. They could win over Victoria.

Exhaustion took over and I slumbered into a light sleep. As I started dreaming I found myself in a familiar looking place. I was standing in a small, slightly overcrowded living room. My Daddy had his big palm securely closed around my tiny hand. I recognized that I was dreaming about one of my earliest childhood memories. Renee had been visiting my Dad. I hadn't been much older as a toddler then. Charlie had brought me to the Reservation to show me Billy's and Sarah's new baby. As soon as I saw the baby sleeping in its cradle I felt a strong attraction that made it impossible for me to step away from it. I watched over Baby Jacob like a duck over their ducklings, barely allowing Sarah Black to only breastfeed him, let alone taking him away in another room to sleep. And when it had been evening and Renee wanted to head back home, I had fought like a wildcat to stay with my Dad and the Black's. I wanted to be with Jacob. I hated that Renee had been stronger and could easily carry me away, ignoring my kicking, punching and yelling at her. The feeling to be separate from him had been terrible and I had been crying and yelling for hours. Even now when I only thought about that memory my hands clenched to fists and I gritted my teeth.

I forced my eyes open and looked out of the window. I could already see the lights of the city of Port Angeles under me and the airplane began its final descent.

Would Charlie be there to pick me up?

_  


* * *

_

Charlie's POV

I followed Chief Woods out of the bungalow as he headed after Burkhardt. Burkhardt though was nowhere to be seen anymore. I sighed and ran after Woods, who, despite his age, moved amazingly fast. He reached the forest within seconds. The trees stopped his tempo and I was finally able to close up with him. I switched on my lamp and let its light stream into the forest.

"A red moon is no bad omen, Woods." I breathed heavily from the run. I was not afraid of a celestial phenomenon and I wanted Woods to know this. Woods shot me a warning glance to be quiet as he walked deeper into the forest. His eyes narrowed into slits and he searched the darkness for a sign of Burkhardt. It was quiet, too quiet – neither the nocturnal animals nor the wind made any noise. The only thing to be heard was our breathing and our footsteps while walking through the undergrowth.

I startled when not so far apart I heard the cracking of a breaking bough. I focused my lamp to the noise. But the mist swirled from the ground up to the trees reflecting the light and all we could see now was a white foggy wall. I cussed to myself and switched the lamp off. I was blind for a moment but then my eyes adjusted to the darkness and I could slowly managed to see the blurry frames of the trees. Woods took the lead and turned into the direction where the sound came from.

"In our culture it is a bad sign. For as long as I remember the legends tell that bad things will happen under the red moon." Chief Woods felt compelled to explain his sight of things to me.

I walked behind him, trying ever so hard to make as less noise as possible, but there was no way I could move as quietly as he could.

"It's superstition though, Woods. I don't want to make fun out of your tales, but this phenomenon is just plain and simple a lunar eclipse." I whispered staying close to him. "It occurs whenever sun, earth and moon align exactly."

Woods only mumbled to himself, but seemed to be eagerly listening to me nevertheless.

Our heads rocked up in unison as we heard another rustling and cracking.

"This way." Woods turned left now. I wasn't sure, but was there somebody moving behind the trees? I touched Woods arm and then pointed with my left hand into the darkness. But whatever I had seen, it was already gone or had never been there. Frustration and fear mingled within me and I felt the adrenaline flashing my body. I stepped forward, taking the lead now and went into the direction where I had seen the figure standing.

"The red colouring arises because sunlight reaching the moon must pass trough a layer of the earth's atmosphere. It is scattered there…" I explained my voice barely a whisper now. I knew I distracted myself from my fear by talking.

We stopped again, after Woods gave another warning and turned around swiftly. But still – nobody was to be seen.

"Bad omen!" Woods rumbled and I hurried to pass him along the rest of my explanation, while we tried to find a way through the undergrowth.

"The shorter wavelengths of the sunlight are scattered from small particles in the earth atmosphere. And by the time the light has passed, the longer wavelengths are dominating. And those we perceive as red light. And that is why the moon is red today…"

A huge furious snarling silvery-white animal jumped out of nowhere and moved towards us with great speed.

"Woods." I gasped shocked and crouched to the ground, pulling Chief Woods with me.

The beast leaped over us and lunged for something which had been moving behind us. I covered my head instinctely. There was a horrible crack as the animal and whatever it was behind us collided. I heard another push and a moan and then I felt the absence of the man that had been my support throughout the whole day.

"Have you seen this?" I asked ignoring the horror that approached me and turned around. I was alone. Chief Woods was gone.

I jerked and jumped to my feet. I suppressed my instincts that told me to flee and run for my dear life. I spun around searching for Woods, but I couldn't see him anywhere. I stumbled over my feet, tripped and fell backwards again. I heard the beast wrathfully growl followed by a sharp metallic screeching sound and a high-pitched, ear-piercing, unnatural shriek. All of my hair stood on end. I fought to get on my feet again to search for my colleague.

Before I knew what happened to me I was kicked in my ribs and I flew into one of the trees behind me. My bones popped as I dashed against the tree. The impact knocked the breath out of me and my head rocked back and forth again with so much force that I heard my atlas snap. Slowly my numb body slid to the ground. I must have lost my consciousness for a moment, but when I opened my eyes I stared into Officer Woods dead broken eyes.

"Bloody hell!" I shouted horrified. What the f*ck was going on here? I stifled the furious sob that built in my chest. I wouldn't panic now.

"Relax, Swan. Focus!" I ordered myself. One of my hands reached up to check on my burning occiput. I felt blood dripping from a wound that I must have sustained, when I got tossed into the tree.

I smelled the rusty scent of my own blood and my stomach churned. My vision became blurry and I tried so very hard not to puke all over me. Cautiously I moved my limbs and found I could feel and control my arms and legs. I crawled over to Chief Woods' dead body. His head was angled in an utterly wrong position. His neck was broken. I took his pistol which was still lying beside him and got up on my feet. I would do my damn best to stay alive.

I had walked only a few steps away from the scene as a woman graciously jumped down from a tree. She had the most beautiful red hair I had ever seen, but her clothes where dirty and torn.

"Miss, can I help you?" I asked her and lowered the pistols. Had she been hiding on that tree? Maybe she had been kidnapped as well? I walked closer but before I could address her again, she was standing at my side and blew me back in the tree.

I cried out as pain ripped through me again. I looked up in disbelief and stared into her crazed crimson-red eyes.

_  


* * *

  
JPOV_

We swarmed out and entered our forest. The colour of the moon was still changing. Being yellow-orange minutes ago it now deepened into a fiery red. The forest was quiet, too quiet for my liking. My animal side reacted on the moon, made my fur stand on end and brought forth the deep urge to howl at it. I killed the deep rumbling in my chest and focused on our mission.

_Leah, go ahead!_ I told my beta and she went off like lightning. We followed her instantly but spread out over a bigger area.

Frissons of excitement were running down my spine. The forest whooshed past us since we were running like hell. The faint smell of vampire stink burned in my nose. But it was the old track. We soon left it behind us.

Minutes later Embry skidded to a halt, sniffing the ground excitedly.

_Six._ He reported.

_This way. _He turned and sprinted towards Forks Forest.

_The stranger is in the forest._ Leah chimed in. Through our minds I saw her impatiently padding her paws to the ground. _His track is fresh._

_Ignore him._ I said, but she circled the clearing where she was standing, checking on the stranger's scent.

_It smells different, Jake._ The excitement she felt infected us too.

_Get a grip. You can check on that later._ I urged her. She whined quietly but gave in. And again she ran as fast as she could, soon reaching the border to the former Cullen territory. She passed the line running deeper into Forks Forest.

_They are here._ She hissed finally. A low growl erupted from her throat.

_  
Quiet. _I reminded her.

We closed up forming in a lose 'V'.

_I smell human. _Embry who had been running on the left side stuck his muzzle into the wind.

Charlie's scent hit me like a hammer.

_What is he doing in here?_ I barked furiously, but stopped at once as I remembered that we would be heard.

_That's Chief Swan._ I told the others and followed Charlie's track that soon was overlaid by vampire stink, whilst cussing him out big time.

_Mom kills you if she ever finds out I could hear that._ Seth chimed in sniggering.

I rolled my eyes. _Focus, Seth!_

We pushed our legs to increasing our tempo. Chief Swan's life was at stake. It's now or never.

Soon we reached a place where Charlie's scent stopped, but the vampire stink still lasted. Where was he now?

The stranger's scent was strong here and we all could smell that there was a difference in his scent. But we had no time to analyse it now. That would need to wait for later.

How should we proceed now? The closer we came to the vampires, the more our own scent would betray us. The wind was unstable, swirling around us, constantly changing direction.

We needed to find Charlie as soon as possible but must not reveal our presence too soon. If we made a mistake now, we would forfeit the moment of surprise and putting Swan's life in an even greater danger. If we were lucky they had dragged him away but held him alive still. We put our hope in that.

I heard a whisper in the wind, talking to me in our Quileute language, insisting me to use my new gift. Of course, how could I forget?

_You __need stay here and protect my body._ I told my pack.

_What are you doing, Jake?_ Leah asked nervously.

_I'm __searching for Charlie Swan using my spirit form. I will find him in seconds and then I will enter my body again and we're going to attack. _

* * *

_Author's __POV_

Charlie Swan doubted his sanity, as he stared into the crimson eyes of the woman who had recently slapped him against the tree. His cheek hurt as did his whole head. His vision was hazy. He tried to run but his limbs miserably betrayed him, failing to follow his brain's orders.

The red-haired beauty possessively stroked his face and whispered into his ear: "You are mine…"

Charlie gurgled being shocked and backed away. But he lost his balance and fell. With one hand she pressed him to the ground and then he recognized how ice cold her hand was and how much strength she must possess.

"Who are you?" He managed to ask her. The woman let go of him and stood up. She didn't answer Charlie's question. Slowly she walked away but in an instant she was standing at his side again smacking his face.

His head rocked back and his teeth snapped together with a loud noise.

"What do you want?" He panted while his heart rate accelerated and he broke out in cold sweat. His chest and ribs were hurting like hell. Her sweet breath blew over his face as she laughed at him like a manic.

"To kill you will be fun…" She hissed and then stared at his badge. She seemed surprised.

"YOU are Chief Swan?" The woman stated and laughed even more. "Who'd have thought that? Found you without even searching..." She stalked closer again until she hovered directly over him. She grabbed Swan's collar and pulled him up until she had him hanging on her outstretched arm. His feet dangled inches over the ground.

_  
W__HAT. was. she?_

"You better run, Charlie Swan." She flashed a frightening smile exposing unnatural white glistening teeth before she pushed him back into the tree trunk. Her hand closed around his neck, squeezing his esophagus until he lacked from oxygen and his eyes bulged. Charlie's hands closed around her wrist to fight her off. She was ice cold to his touch and hard as a stone.

The shock about being attacked finally faded and Charlie got really furious. He finally fought back but his attempts to shake her off didn't have any effect on her. He kicked my feet, trying to hit her, but he kicked at nothing. He got weaker and weaker and almost passed out from the lack of oxygen but finally she let go of him. She tossed him against the tree again. His head collided with the hard wood and his teeth bit down on his lip. The tender skin burst open and he tasted his own blood.

"You are bleeding, Swan…" The woman sang pleased and pressed her body against him. Charlie tried to escape the contact by pressing ever more against the tree. She greeted his efforts with amused laughter.

"You just smell so good…" She whispered and her red eyes glistened desirously.

The Officer couldn't believe what was happening to him. His head was spinning from the impact, but he promised to himself that wouldn't give in his physical weakness. He would fight for his life.

"Swan…" She murmured rubbing against the man. "You will taste so good." Her tongue darted out of her mouth and she licked the blood from his lip.

He felt so utterly disgusted and instinctively tried to shove her away again. He failed. His throat was on fire and his voice barely audibly. But he demanded with as much force as he could muster: "Let go of me!"

Something in her demeanour made him clear that she was deadly serious. She would kill him and she wouldn't wait any longer. His most primal survival instincts kicked in. As soon as she let him free he stumbled away from her and despite any pride Charlie Swan started to run. He ran as fast as he only could but she kept up without any effort. Whenever he thought he had shaken her off, she was next to his side pushing him over and over again. Very soon he was completely exhausted. He hardly could move his feet anymore. He was bleeding from his nose. He was bleeding on his hands and knees. His head was aching and spinning. Charlie Swan understood that she was playing with him, like a cat played with a mouse.

He didn't know how many miles she had chased him through the woods. Eventually he fell to the ground. There was neither physical strength left nor any will to fight her any longer. Surrendering he turned on his back to face her before she would kill him. The woman was beautiful, her skin as white as he had never seen a human's skin.

"Why are you doing this?" Swan asked her dumbfounded. He was lying in the dirt, almost begging her to finish it. He couldn't stand the pain of his hurt body anymore, nor could he stand the suspense if she would or would not kill him finally.

"I will have the same fun with your daughter, Charlie Swan!" She said and the meanest grin spread over her face. He stared into her beautiful face, his brown eyes frozen from the shock over her words. Her breath brushed over him dazzling him, as she bent down to him.

"I will erase your bloodline from this earth, Charlie Swan." She whispered into his ears, causing chilly shivers running down his back.

"But know, that your daughter isn't going to die as easy as I let you die."

As the words finally sank in he freaked out. He gathered every single amount of strength that was left in him and while he fumbled for the pistol that still stuck in his holster, he distracted her for a moment with kicking her shins with his boots.

"You will never put your hands on my daughter!" He promised her and pulled the trigger. The pistol went off with an ear deafening bang.

The bullet bounced off as if her skin was granite. The ricochet flew past his cheek almost hitting his left temple. He didn't know what to do else, everything about her was only unnatural. He realized that he would never overwhelm her no matter how hard he would try. He raised the arm which held the pistol and smashed it as hard as he could on her head. His pistol broke into a million pieces. His arm tingled and hurt. At once it became numb hanging limp and useless from his body. Amidst laughter she pulled him back close to her body.

"I like it, when they fight me hard." She grazed the skin on his neck first with her lips but then he felt her teeth scratching along his throat. His breath faltered. The last piece of the puzzled clicked in and he finally knew who was standing before him. She must be the woman which had been involved into the kidnapping crime of the strange guy from the hospital and very obviously was she responsible for the dead drained people too. Was it possible that she was a vampire?

„Vampire!" He gasped out. But he received no answer since in the same moment when her teeth pressed even more into the tender skin of his throat five huge wolves broke through the woods and she seemed to vanish into thin air. Last thing he heard before his legs gave out was her laughter that echoed in the forest.

He passed out.

_  


* * *

_

JPOV

My pack members were staring at me. Their thoughts were swirling and seeking for an explanation. That wanted to know how I would manage to leave my body to search for Charlie Swan? We all knew that we would only stop when we had found the Bella's father and hopefully saved him. I wasted no time.

_You may not leave my body no matter what!!!_ I instructed again. I was anxious leaving my body behind knowing that rampant vampires were within a few miles' radius. But I had no choice if I wanted to find Bella's father in time.

Like Sphinxes my friends placed their bodies around me. I stayed in my wolf form, settled on the ground and focused on my first astral experience. I clearly remembered how my astral body had separated from my physical body and how it had felt to travel in astral form. I could only hope that the OBE would work when I was in my wolf form. I didn't dare to phase back right now.

I huffed nervously and rested my head on my front legs. I closed my eyes and willed my muscles to relax. Surprisingly I learned that my mind blended out any disturbing thoughts and that my body became extremely heavy within seconds. Trusting into the ability of my mind and body, I finally took a deep, steady breath and felt my lungs expand. Then I exhaled slowly, visualising all tension leaving me. My physical body soon felt immovable as a rock but I already felt the weightlessness of my inner self.

Even with my closed eyes I could now notice what was around me. I perceived my pack members, the forest around me and the sky above. Around all things I saw a brightly glowing and I heard the wind's mystical whispers.

_Up! _Ithought and I felt my spirit press against the natural boundaries of my physical body.

_Up!_ I commanded again. I focused on the illumination and pictured my spiritual form floating up into the light. I shot skywards like a rocket and then flew horizontally over the tree line. I saw my astral body connected to my physical self through the familiar silver cord. My brothers and my sister were guarding my body whilst warily watching the forest and listening to the slightest sounds.

I shortened the distance to the trees. My eyes pried the forest, sensing the deer which was hiding in the undergrowth as well as the birds cuddling deep into their nests. I recognized that not only my olfactory senses were intensified but also my sight was as strong as never before. I smelled Victoria's scent and saw the track being marked with the tiniest particles of sparkling dust, leading me through the forest. I followed the track and discovered that there were four more tracks that eventually gathered into one.

I shot over the forest as if time and space didn't exist and everything merged. I heard boughs breaking and the heavy panting of a human. The scent of Charlie Swan became very strong. I found him standing in the middle of a small clearing enraged shouting at the red-haired vampire woman. He was drenched in sweat and bleeding from several wounds. Victoria mocked him and tossed him making him more aggressive by the second.

_I've got him!__ He's alive!_ I informed my pack members not knowing if they were even able to hear me, since I was not in my body.

_Where is he?_ The four excited voices of the pack vibrated through my astral form.

_They are almost within city reach. _I answered worried, but I also was deeply satisfied that we could communicate.

I sympathetically stared at Charlie for another time. I was sorry for what he had to endure right now. But I could not help him yet. I had to be back in my body of flesh and blood first. The vampire tossed him into a tree and Charlie struggled to get on his feet again. Bad for Charlie, that the leech liked to play with her victims - good for us since it gave us time, we so desperately needed to be there before she would kill him.

For a last time I spied the forest, finding the other four vampires hiding in the trees ready to attack the human victim as soon as their female leader would allow it.

_Prepare for the fasted run of your lives. There's not much time left._ I warned the pack.

I willed my spirit back in my body. As if being an elastic band the silver cord contracted and pulled me back into my physical form. I jumped to his four legs ready for the fight shaking off the dizziness from the OBE.

_Go!_ I barked and we sprinted forward.

Sudden inspiration struck me: I finally knew how we could keep our arrival a secret as long as possible. Though the bloodsuckers must know we probably would be around, I wanted to take advantage of the moment of surprise.

_Spirit warriors__!_ I called out to my ancestors. Remembering his spiritual journey I knew that our forefathers were always around guiding us, if we only would ask them.

_Be the wind that_ s_urrounds us. Cover our scents. Conceal us! _I prayed for help and trusted I would get it. And I was heard.

The wind blew up, coming from different directions, swirling around us. Soon the wind became stronger, plucked the leaves from the trees and bent the treetops.

We swiftly flew over the ground and the wind formed an invisible shield made of air around us, so no vampire could track our scent. And the air which was invincible first condensed and rose as fog as we came near to the clearing. We spread out forming a ring around the stinking bunch of vampires.

When we reached the clearing we watched awe-struck how Charlie Swan whacked the female vampire over the head with his pistol.

_Touché!_ I thought triumphant but my face fell, as the vampire laughed at Charlie Swan even more and pulled him close to her body.

_  
Now!_ I barked. The fog lifted and we broke through the forest and leapt into the clearing. Victoria let go of Charlie Swan and vanished into thin air. She seemed to have an unfailing sense of upcoming danger. It was not the first time she had escaped shortly before we could overmaster her. I headed after her followed by Leah.

Through the eyes of the remaining wolves I saw Charlie Swan sinking to the ground. Did we come too late? Desperation and fury flashed through me.

Victoria turned around mid-running. She sped up when she saw us furious wolves close to her heels. She realized that she couldn't play with us as she played with her human victims and that this could possibly be the last game of her life if she lost it.

Due to our linked minds, I recognized several vampires dropping like fowl apples from the trees around the clearing.

_Ewww._ Quil muttered, as he took in the burning vampire scent.

_Take Seth into your midst._ I ordered. Embry and Quil stepped closer to each other to keep Seth save. I didn't like having our youngest one not close to me or my Beta, but I had no choice right now. Victoria was the most skilled leech of this coven and Leah and I were the strongest wolves. So we needed to bring her down first.

Doing a huge jump Leah shot over the read-haired vampire and blocked her path. Victoria stopped dead in her tracks. Leah bared her teeth. Her body language spoke about her being excited, thrilled even. Finally she would kick some vampire ass for the sh*t that happened to her because vampires existed. But nevertheless I knew she felt uneasy too, knowing Seth had to fight on his own.

But Seth howled with innocent teenage enthusiasm: _Let them have it!_

He lunged forward bringing the smallest vampire down. As the vampires saw Seth jumping forward they came to life. One ran off into the woods, two crouched into a defensive position and attacked.

_  
Bring it __on, leech._ Leah growled aggressively and circled Victoria. _Your number is up. _

The vampire recoiled when she looked into Leah's hate-filled eyes. She hissed and crouched forming her hands to claws. Her head jerked to and fro keeping both wolves in sight. But she came within reach of my sharp teeth in the attempt to back away even more. I gladly snapped at her, making her jump. I felt her fear and I was utterly disgusted. This bloodsucker had been making fun out of assaulting weak humans before killing them, but when it came to fighting for her own life she was almost peeing herself.

_L__eeches don't pee._ Leah laughed, which came out as a rough bark. I grinned about the absurdity of the moment and stalked closer. But behind my wolfish grin I was beyond angry. This vampire was responsible for so many deaths, not to mention what she had just done to Charlie Swan and the plans she obviously had forged about Bella. Standing in front of this leech I promised to myself, that she would not leave this place alive.

I was astonished how multi-levelled my brain worked. I easily focussed on my own fight and still could keep an eye on my pack. Luckily the fight was quickly over for Quil and Embry. Although the two vampires acted on pure strength and instinct they possessed neither fighting skills nor were they prepared for a battle. All in all it was a matter of a few minutes until Quil and Embry had ripped them apart and carefully put the severed body parts aside, taking care that the parts wouldn't touch each other.

But Seth was still crouching over the small vampire.

_Seth?_ I asked the little one while cornering Victoria, who frantically tried to escape. Victoria was swift and whenever I attacked I just missed her. Leah watched the vampire's movements, waiting for the right moment to charge, too. She tensed and flexed her legs and then finally shot forward lunging for the vampire's neck. But Victoria saw Leah coming and took a swipe aiming for her head. Her fist collided with the wolf's jaw. Leah was hurled back and flew into a tree that splintered into a million pieces.

Seth yelped upset seeing his sister crashing into the tree. He still refused to kill the vampire he held capture.

_She's __only a girl._ He whined. _I can't kill a girl._

_Don't be a baby! _Embry snorted and rolled his eyes.

_She's a vampire. She killed innocent people._ Quil said insistently but Seth protested furthermore.

_I can't. __She's just as old as I am. _

The vampire girl whimpered and wailed not daring to move. The three boys stared at each other trying to find a solution.

_There's one left._ I reminded them impatiently.

_I will find the other one._ Embry ran off into the forest, leaving Quil with Seth. I hated that Embry had to go on his own. But Embry was a tracker, he would find the escaping leech and he was strong enough to finish it.

I needed to concentrate hard on Victoria now. Her attempts to defend herself became absolutely frantic. So I zoomed out the discussion Quil and Seth had. Only fragmentarily I listened to Seth not giving in, convincing Quil that they couldn't kill a girl who was - for crying out loud - pleading them to be gentle with her. When the girl recognized that the two seemed to be uneasy about how to proceed with her, she stirred filled with hope. Quil growled aggressively when she moved and she shrank back, wailing louder.

Hearing her progeny wail and recognizing it was the last one still living, apart from her, distracted Victoria for the slightest second. She unguardedly turned her back on me to buzz off. But I caught her and my teeth broke through the granite hard skin of the vampire's arm, holding her into place. I sneered at her, making her shrink even more. Masses of light grey fur and well toned muscles shot forward in unleashed fury. This time Leah successfully aimed and her claws ripped open the vampires beautiful face.

Victoria cried out in pain and tore herself away from my grip. With a metallic screech the flesh tore and the upper arm severed from the shoulder joint. The vampire woman yelled furious and lunged for my neck. I ducked down and dodged the onslaught. I tossed the arm aside and snapped for the other one.

Leah jumped again and kicked her muzzle into the vampire's ribs. The push made the leech fly through the air and since I held tight to the second arm it tore from her body as well. Victoria landed face first in the muddy ground. Leah's strong teeth closed around her neck. I heard the sickening crack and a snap and then Leah ripped off the vampire's head.

_  
Got her!_ Leah frolicked. She snatched the red locks and hurled the head away from the helpless twitching body. The severed head fell to the side with its eyes still open and a horrified expressing defacing the beautiful features.

I howled and grinned about Leah victoriously barking.

Good job! I wanted to high five her but being in wolf form I couldn't. Leah read my thoughts, snickered and kicked her flank into me.

_Take__ the head with you. It may never touch the body_. I reminded my Beta and gathered the corpse with my teeth and carried it to the clearing.

Chief Swan moaned and regained consciousness. He stirred and moved his arms and legs.

_Check on him. _I asked and sped up his pace. Quil hurried over and his brown eyes quickly controlled the human's skin and the wounds he could see.

_Are you hurt?_ He asked Charlie, forgetting that he was still in his wolf form. As Charlie heard a wolf growl he opened his eyes. He saw the big grey wolf's head so close to him. His heartbeat faltered and he passed out again.

_Oops._ Quil yelped. _I frightened him._

I snorted and shook my head. _Was he bitten?_

Quil carefully nudged Charlie and turned him on his back. With his muzzle he pushed aside the collar of Swan's jacket.

_No bite marks._ He listened to Charlie's heartbeat. And h_is heartbeat is steady. _I was relieved since I knew from Bella that once bitten the victim would writhe and suffer from the burning sensation of the vampire venom. If Charlie had been bitten, he wouldn't be so quiet.

_  
Embry, where are you?_ I asked. I had been so consumed from the sorrow about Chief Swan that I hadn't heard anything that was going on with Embry.

Embry hurried through the wood. I saw he was close to First Beach, but there were two other wolves flanking him. _Who the…???_

_Collin and Brady._ Embry said dryly.

I groaned. Two kids more into this. And we all had thought Seth had been the last one transforming into a wolf.

_The leech?_

_Donzo, big boss._ Embry mocked. _We're coming over._

We were back on the clearing a minute later and found Seth still sitting next to the vampire girl. He held her in place with his fore legs across her chest.

Quil flashed a wolfish grin welcoming us. _Seth wouldn't kill her because she is a girl. _He explained still grinning goofy.

_Hu?_ Leah sloppily dropped the head of the red-haired female aside and walked closer to the girl. It wailed as it saw another member of her species slaughtered. Leah pushed the girl which made it shriek in horror and fear.

Damn, Seth. _She's a vampire. Vamp – evil. _Leah grumbled.

Seth rolled his eyes totally unnerved. He knew by himself that his behaviour was completely irrational and inappropriate. But this girl was far too young to die and she could be fine and living if this red-haired devil hadn't turned her into a vampire.

_What do you want to do with her? _I asked. I had no clue on how to proceed with this leech girl. _We can't set her free._

_Seth always wanted to keep a__ pet._ Leah mocked her brother again.

Before I could answer and make a decision, Embry came running into the clearing. The new wolves flanked his side.

_Collin? Brady? _I welcomed them skidded to a halt.

_What happened to you? _All of them looked completely dishevelled.

_The bloodsucker ran straight into La Push and the two of them…_ Embry pushed the boys. _…had been sneaking around instead of sleeping. As soon as they smelled him they phased and attacked him instinctively._

_And succeeded???? _I was amazed. _Either you're lucky fellows or absolutely natural talents._

The boys stared to the ground shamefaced.

"You might need this." My father's deep voice sounded from behind me. He came walking through the trees. In his hand he held a flamethrower, marching like a bada$$ hero to the vampire corpses, where Quil and Leah meanwhile had already erected a pyre. My father set the pile on fire with this huge flamethrower and tossed the first corpse into the fire.

I stared at him like a retard, whilst Embry told me how my father had heard the uproar. And then he had seen the two new wolves and the vampire. He had shouted at the boys explaining what had happened to them and what they needed to do to get not killed by the bloodsucker.

_I just came in time and together we ripped the leech apart._ Embry finished his report. _And then your father walked into your garage, came back with this flamethrower, set this bloodsucker ablaze right there on the street. And then we came to the clearing._

I couldn't believe what I just heard and saw. I still wasn't used to seeing my father so vivid and acting like …THIS.

I shook my head, cleared my thoughts and turned around to check on Charlie Swan. But the place were he had been lying was empty.

Charlie had disappeared.

* * *

**A/N: So, where's Charlie gone? Who's the silvery-white wolf? Where do Bella's early childhood memories come from? Wouldn't you agree that Seth is the cutest puppy ever? And Leah rocks! Girl power forever.**


	19. Chapter 17

_**Finding you (again)**_

**JPOV**

I knew I was close to losing my temper. Even though I still was in my wolf form I was shaking really bad. We had just had saved Charlie and now he was gone again. I was hopping mad with myself. How could I miss Charlie's exit? _Hello, extraordinary senses? What's up with you???_

He must have been running away, I was sure about that. If there had been another bloodsucker kidnapping him, I would've known at once. So what friggin' poof gene does this man possess?

The vampire girl wailed hysterically when I came too close to her. I growled in response. Seth better got rid of her before I would do it for him. This bloodsucking sissy was totally bugging me with her whimpering. Seth snorted only and glared at the girl who quietened at once. Furiously I hurled the last body parts of the dead leeches on the pile. I breathed in a heavy load of the fuming stench and needed to cough, which made me even more furious.

_Easy, Jake._ Quil tried to calm me down. _Charlie went this way. Embry is following him._

Through Embry's eyes I caught sight how Charlie stumbled through the under growth and then crossed a street.

_Where is he going? _I rumbled. _Why didn't you hold him back? He shouldn't be alone right now! _I felt like a mental retard. My father coming to the scene, handling the situation with so much dignity and serenity had so completely taken me aback. I had been absolutely fixed up on him and the new wolves that I forgot about Charlie for the tiniest moment. It turned out it had been a too long moment. If anything happened to Charlie Bella would never be happy again.

I still was way too angry to phase back to human. I stared into the sky and tried to calm down. The moon had changed its colour. The bloody red was gone and left was a pale yellow shade. My father laid his hand on my back and said in a calming voice: "Jacob, don't worry. We are very close to Forks. I guess he walked home. He has a lot of things to deal with now." My father went on meeting my eyes. I wasn't used yet to hear his voice from this height. Crap, he was so tall. I didn't even need to bend my head to look into his face. He was just my size here.

Dad patted my back and encouraging stroked through the ruffled fur on my neck. I don't know if it was my father's touch or if it was the knowledge of Charlie being guarded by Embry, but my anger slowly faded away. I turned around and searched the ground for Charlie's scent. I needed to follow him. I had to see with my own eyes that he was ok with whatever he was doing right now. But could I leave with this leech still alive? Seth growled warningly and let me know that he still refused to let this kid be killed. Leah rolled her eyes and derisively looked at the vamp girl.

_When she moves a finger she's dead!_ She growled and the girl squinched her eyes shut but didn't dare to move otherwise. She reacted as if she had understood was Leah had been thinking. The bloodsucker's eyes flung open again and she stared at me.

_She hears us._ I snarled and three pairs of eyes fixed on mine. I fixed my gaze on the leech. _Can you hear me?_ A low growl escaped my throat and she slowly nodded. _Mindreader?_ I wanted to know and she shook her head.

"I can understand your growls and snarls." She whispered terrified and her answer brought forth huffs and snarls from the four of us. My dad moved closer and the bloodsucker flared her nose. Her fingers twitched but then she stayed still again, staring anxiously at me.

Suddenly there was a low buzzing sound from somewhere between the trees and I jumped, ready to attack. But there was no one. Obviously the adrenaline in my system was still running high and made me kind of twitchy and agitated. I ran over to where the sound came from and with my muzzle I pushed a cell phone from under some leafs.

_It's four of us against you__, little thing._ I turned my attention back to the girl and snarled warningly. She whimpered.

"It's Charlie's." My father bent down and picked up the phone. He put it into his pocket and faced the vampire.

"They will rip you apart at once, if you try anything." He warned her and with another glare at Seth he said: "She's a killer, Seth. Don't forget that."

_Kill her, if needed._ I added looking at Seth. _I'm sorry._

"Come on, Jacob, let's go after him." My father started to walk towards Forks. He followed Charlie's track as if he could smell it just like me. I raised my eyebrow questioning and he gave me a bewildered look back.

"My sight, hearing and smelling has increased many times over." He stated quietly while walking with almost making no sound.

I slowed my pace down adapting to my father's steps. Walking with him brought so many memories back even though I was trotting as a gigantic wolf next to him. It had been ten years ago when I took a long trip with him for the last time. But his bones and muscles had already been achy and stiff then. And it was more then twelve years ago that he could walk with this ease. I couldn't restrain my feelings of pride and awe since he glowed in outshining authority. In this very moment I knew I would be following him everywhere. Not only for him being my father, but much more for being the true and worthy chief of our tribe.

After a few minutes walk, we reached the woodline behind the Swan's residence. Charlie was sitting on his porch. He was pale and shivering and then we realized he was puking his guts out. I stayed hidden in the shadow of the forest, while my father moved forward. Embry closed up to me.

_I called at the hospital. They'll send a doc, just so you know._ He sat down on his behind and I could feel the confusion and sorrow he felt. He had been phasing when seeing Chief Swan like this, had sneaked into the house, called from the Swan's phone, sneaked out and phased back.

_Why? _I wanted to know. A doctor coming meant new problems. What when Charlie spilled the beans about what he had seen? Wouldn't they put him into an asylum?

_I was so worried he would suffer a heart attack. He ran home like a maniac. And then his heart rate spiked and he clutched his chest._ Embry whimpered at the memory of those minutes. I snarled frustrated not knowing what do think or to do. I concentrated on Charlie's heartbeat and I could clearly hear the irregularities. Now I hoped for the doctor to come really fast. I turned my attention back to my father and Charlie.

Charlie's eyes were bulging as he watched my father walking towards him. He opened and closed his mouth but failed to speak whatever he was thinking. Angry lines formed on his forehead. My father sat down next to Charlie but left him some private space. I heard him talking to Charlie low and soothing. But Charlie mustered up all strength that was left in him and angrily yelled at my dad. On his temple a big vein throbbed angrily. I had never seen him that furious and found me praying he wouldn't die just here and now.

"You walk?" He shouted boiling mad and pushed my father away. "What's going on here? Have you been acting all the time?" I could sense he was hurt and felt being betrayed.

"I demand you finally tell me what's going on and what you are hiding from me!" Charlie yelled, but then he cringed and reached for his chest. His breathing became erratic but he refused any help from my dad.

My father grew pale. He must hear Charlie's unstable heartbeat. What would he do now?

"Fine." He huffed. "Since you've seen too much already, I will tell you." My father signalled me to come closer.

"Promise me, you try to regain your composure, Charlie. You don't need to be afraid. Just try to stay calm." He pleaded.

I felt highly uncomfortable. Wouldn't we scare Charlie even more? I hesitated but my dad said out loud: "Come here, Jacob and Embry."

Embry and I closed the distance, walking slowly so Charlie could see every move we made. When we reached the Swan's property we stayed hidden in dark place under some trees but so, that no one but Charlie could still see us in the pale moonlight. He was trembling all over and on the edge to losing it.

"You don't need to be afraid, Charlie. It's Jacob and Embry." My father explained to Charlie and gave me a sign to come closer. Charlie shrank back, when I stepped out of the shadows. He tried to get on his feet but stumbled on the stairs and fell back on his butt. I felt sorry for him for all those feelings that he must be experiencing right now. How could his mind understand and cope to what had been done to him, what he had seen and experienced this night?

My dad increased the pressure of his hand that still laid on Charlie's shoulder. Charlie stared at me disbelievingly. His eyes unsteadily flickered over my frame. I knew he was seeing the huge shaggy wolf beast and he would relate what he saw to the werewolf scary stories. I needed to show him, that I was not dangerous for him. His brain had already recognized that the woman who had harassed him had not been human, even if it hadn't sunk in yet. We had heard him calling out 'Vampire' a second before we attacked. He already knew a big part of the story by now. There was no need to hide our secret from him anymore.

I stepped behind a bush to spare Charlie the embarrassment seeing me completely naked. I phased and straightened to my full height. Charlie gasped, grew even paler and suddenly bent forward and started vomiting again. There wasn't much left in his stomach, so he suffered from the dry hurtful cramps.

"Ah, crap." I cussed and quickly put on my pants. "I didn't mean to scare you." I walked over to him. He shrank back again. His eyes wandered over my changed form. When he had seen me a few days ago, I was smaller then. "I didn't want this happen to you, Chief Swan. I told you to stay out of Quileute territory."

Charlie leaned back exhausted but hissed. "You should have told me the truth. Both of you."

"We couldn't, Charlie. I never ever lied to you, but this secret we have to keep under all circumstances. Only a few people know about this. And most people of our tribe don't even know the secret." My father said with a sad expression on his face. I could tell how bad he felt about all this.

"Charlie, please, let me help you into the house." He scooped Charlie up in his arms, wobbled under the weight but he managed to get him through the door and to the couch. He laid Charlie down and sat next to him.

"The doctor has arrived." I told them, when I heard a car pulling into the driveway. Charlie only shook his head not being able to wonder about anything anymore. My dad pulled the cell phone out of his pocket and handed it to Charlie, while I opened the door for the doctor.

* * *

**BPOV**

I walked through the Port Angeles Airport building. Charlie hadn't been at the arrival area and he wasn't waiting for me outside. So the bad feeling I had all the time proved to be true. Nervously I chewed on my lower lip. It was 6 in the morning already which was the time where Dad would usually be awake and ready to go to his office. Hadn't Renee got him on the phone? Didn't he know that he was supposed to pick me up? Why wasn't he here? I felt like crying right now. Was he just delayed or did some incident get in the way with picking me up? What was the reason why I couldn't reach him for over 24 hours now?

My hands were cold and numb when I dialled his cell phone number and it rang and rang and rang but he didn't answer. Maybe he had stayed over night in Quinault? If it had been too late to drive back home, he would stayed there, wouldn't he? But why didn't he answer his phone now??? This was so totally not Charlie!! I was slithering on edge considering all bad things that could have happened to him. My hands were shaking really bad when I wrote him a text message, hoping he would read it anytime soon and eventually write back that he would at least pick me up in Forks.

It made no sense to wait any longer. It wasn't like Charlie to be late and I knew I would be even more anxious if I stayed here. I took my bag and started to search for a bus stop. I didn't know where to go, because whenever Charlie had picked me up from this airport I had never taken much care about other means of transportation than his car. But there must be a bus stop somewhere. I crossed the airport building and followed the direction signs. Being overly tired and nervous as well I started to freeze very soon. It was much colder in the State of Washington then in Florida, but not as cold yet as it usually was here. Nevertheless I was freezing and almost chattering my teeth. I wrapped myself tightly into my new wool coat trying to keep my body temperature. While walking over the still empty airport floors I longed to call Jacob, just for the pure, unadulterated need to hear his voice. But I didn't dare to do so. Maybe he had been on patrol all night trying to get a grip on Victoria and was sleeping now? The queasy feeling in my stomach got worse. I took deep breaths to calm down. Eventually I found the station and there was a bus waiting already. I studied the display to find out, that I was standing in front of the bus that would leave for Forks in a few minutes. So I bought a ticket and sat down in a middle row. A couple of people were waiting already and during the next minutes some more passengers boarded.

I rummaged in my bag and pulled out the new Ipod my mother had given to me before I left Jacksonville. I browsed the play list. Most of the songs my mother had installed were unfamiliar for me. I became aware that I had missed a lot of good songs over the last months, when I had been avoiding everything that could possibly remind me of Edward. Actually I liked the songs and when the bus started I already was deep into the music. Renee had taken very much care in collecting the songs. There were funny ones, bold ones, romantic ones – each one of them downright positive. I concentrated on the lyrics and the melodies, enjoying how the flow of a song would provoke emotions I had abandoned for so long.

I was sleepy from the rhythmic shaking of the bus. The night flight and my lack of sleep had its toll on me, too. At some time I drifted into a light slumber only to wake up again when a new song started. The closer I came to Forks the more butterflies I had in my stomach. The mere thought of seeing Jacob so very soon now made me want to squeal out of joy. I could hardly hold me back from writhing on my seat.

When had my feelings increased so much? What made me so excited to see Jacob? When did it happen that I had so fallen completely in love with him that I became more and more agitated to see him soon? Not even the sorrow about why my father wouldn't answer my phone calls for over a day could dim the joy I felt to see Jacob again. Every yard I came closer to Forks the more excited I became. My heart started to pound heavily in my chest. And my throat became dry.

_Jacob. Jacob. Jacob__, _was all that I was able to think about until the moment when I suddenly felt watched and observed. A cold chill ran down my spine and the sudden fear knocked the breath out of me. I sank deeper into my seat and warily eyed the people that were travelling with me, but they did nothing that should make me suspicious. There was this black woman in the front row that read the daily. The blond girl opposite me had her ear plugs in obviously listening to music just like me. The old man two seats in front of me tried to stay awake but dozed off over and over again. And the window mirrored a man in the back row. He had his feet resting on the seat in front of him. The hood of his jacket was pulled deep into his face so that it wasn't to be seen. He must be freezing since he had his hands stuffed into his pockets and knees pulled up to his body. But he wasn't watching me either. He seemed to be sleeping given to the steady moves of his chest.

My eyes were checking the dark forest now. Had there something been moving? Had this been a shadow only or was there someone running through the night? Fear pulled my throat close. Suddenly I felt self-conscious. Had it been a good idea to come back without Jacob knew? After all Victoria was still hunting in this area and I was so sure that she was after me. My heart was still pounding in my chest, but it was no joyful pounding now but an anxious hammering.

The more I concentrated on the forest the more I saw shadows and figures moving there. Was my brain playing a trick on me or did I see it for real?

It had been selfish for me to come here. I should have asked Jake first, if it would be safe for me or if my being here would put other ones in danger. Anxiously I bit my lower lip and clasped my clammy hands. Would it be even more selfish if I walked home as fast as I only could, closed me in and called for Jacob to drop by? My breathing accelerated and I knew I was close to a panic attack again. I breathed in and I breathed out forcing myself to calm down. I sent Charlie another message, trying to keep the text easy. Like P_ick me up, I'm at the bus station in 10…_ _ Bells_

I groaned as the feeling of being watched didn't disappear but still I couldn't make out where it came from. The night was slowly fading away now. But the sun hadn't the strength to break through the heavy clouds. It would be another foggy and cold day in Forks. But not even the dim daylight made me feel safer. Would Victoria be so hate-filled to attack during the day in the middle of the town? I hated to be trapped in the bus, but there was nothing I could do about right now. I had to get a grip on myself before I would be pacing the bus like a caged animal.

To distract myself I imagined how it would be to see Jake again. I closed my eyes and let my thoughts drift. When I finally was home I would take my truck and drive over to La Push. If Jacob had been on patrol this night, maybe he would still be sleeping and I could surprise him with me being back again. I smiled at the thought of his sleepy face when he would wake up and recognise that I was standing in front of his bed. The sudden heat in my stomach surprised me. I remembered the morning when I had woken up next to him, he having me pressed tightly to his body. If Billy hadn't been so sick this day, would any of us had taken advantage of the situation, which could have led to maybe more than just holding each other? The blood rushed into my face and the tickling heat spread from my stomach through all over my body.

A rustling behind me pulled me out of my daydream. Frightened I winced and turned around but there was just this man who had only changed his position in his sleep. With a sigh of relieve I sank back on my seat only to spin around again. Did I know him? There was something about him that was familiar to me. My heart skipped a beat. But then, no, even after long staring at him, I didn't find out where I should know him from, esp. with not seeing his face that was still hidden under his hood.

I looked up and saw we were close to Forks now. The first houses came in sight. I turned off my Ipod and stuffed it into my bag. I started to nervously bounce my legs and stared out of the window counting the houses until bus stop. Suddenly my eyes caught sight of the tall, familiar shape of Jake. When the bus passed our house I saw him quickly walking along the sidewalk. I jumped up and spontaneously knocked at the window pane. I believe I even called out his name as well as I jumped up and down out of joy to see him. I recognized that he saw the bus and that he saw me. His face lit up and he started to run. But with the people that were walking along the sidewalk with him, Jake had to keep his pace at human speed. The bus passed him since it was quicker then he could move without making people suspicious and only seconds later he was out of sight again. I took my bag and almost ran to the door. I impatiently tapped my foot to the ground waiting for the bus stop, while I craned my neck to see him as soon as he would come in sight again. The last seconds until arrival took ages. I even was about to yell at the driver to speed up. When the bus finally stopped I hopped off, shouldered my bag and started to run towards Jacob.

* * *

**JPOV**

"Where is the Doctor?" I asked confused and rather unfriendly, expecting Dr. Gerandy but not this small, fragile looking woman of maybe Asian descent standing next to the ambulance. Charlie needed to be treated really fast, speaking of RIGHT NOW here!

"I'm the Doctor." She took her doctor's case out of the car and walked towards me. The way she said it made me guess that she probably needed to clarify her position often. I eyed her suspiciously. She didn't seem to be old enough to be a doctor already, but what was I saying, being the best example that a façade could perfectly hide the true age of someone.

She planted herself in front of me, craned her neck and cleared her throat urging me to let her in. She was tiny, but then, compared to my height, every one was tiny.

"Yeah," I said, running my hand through my hair. She was making me nervous. She seemed to be the type of person who knew by intuition about truth or lies.

"It's Chief Swan. He got into… ahm… some trouble." I stepped aside to let her in. She walked through the door and saw Charlie lying on the sofa.

"Chief Swan?" She greeted him and her eyes flitted over his pale and still figure. "I am Doctor Mauna. But I prefer to be called just Liz." She opened her case and sat down next to Charlie.

"What happened? How are you?" Doc Liz asked, her attitude becoming all professional. She put on sterile gloves as she saw Charlie bleeding and gingerly examined the head wound and the bones of his face.

"He got attacked in the line of duty." My dad chimed in from the back of the room and stepped closer. The Doc threw him a stern look.

"Who are you?" She wanted to know and shook her head disapprovingly as she saw Charlie's hands and the scraped knuckles. He must have fought Victoria really hard, I thought.

"I'm Billy Black. I'm Chief Swan's best friend." My father said and rubbed over his concerned face. "This is my son Jacob." He pointed at me.

"Ah, and he lives here?"

My Dad gave her a bewildered look. "No! Why do you come to think of that?"

The Doc checked me up from head to toe and answered, referring to my half-naked appearance: "Well, because he looks as if he spent the night here."

I shrugged my shoulders and wanted to remain resolutely silent. But her staring through her big brown eyes touched a nerve and I explained: "I fell and got dirty all over."

I felt so heavily uncomfortable knowing we would need to tell her a pack of lies if she felt obliged to ask further.

"Is that so?" Doc Liz addressed Chief Swan who tiredly nodded but I could see that she didn't believe us at all. But luckily she left it at that.

"You could bring your friend a cold pack." She looked at my father and the expression on her face spoke volumes: Why hadn't we already done so?! I narrowed my eyes and crossed my arms. I knew I would look quite hostile, but I didn't like she was here. But Charlie needed to be checked by someone who had a clue, so she was an inevitable necessary tool. I preferred Dr. Gerandy, since he never asked questions, but the hospital sent her. I shrugged. It wasn't that she was unsympathetic but my instincts just told me, that it wouldn't take her long to discover things that should better be left in the dark.

"Chief Swan, I need to check on the rest of your body. I want you to put off your jacket and shirt. Can you manage that?" Charlie nodded and did as she told him. He stripped out of his jacket and shirt quite trancelike. Doc Liz frowned when she saw the bruises and scratches that were scattered all over Charlie's chest. Dad came back from the kitchen and handed the cold pack to her. She took it out of his hand and confused recognised that it wasn't that cold as it usually would be right out of the freezer. I huffed and suppressed a sigh. My father's body temperature was still running high. He had warmed the cold pack within seconds. The doc shrugged her shoulders and beckoned Charlie to press the still cold side on the bruise on his right cheekbone. A blue shadow was already forming there. Charlie did as she told him but I wondered what was up with him. He was so absent and kind of dazed, like as if he had shut his mind down. I had expected him to be eager to tell what happened to him but not this stupor. It scared me to the core. What had that leech done to him???

I was tensed to my toes and aware of the Doc's suspicious glaring at me and my father while she examined Charlie' chest.

Now the little Doctor took out a stethoscope from her case and listened to his heartbeat and breathing. I needed no stethoscope to hear that his heart was still racing and his breathing to fast.

My father bent down and laid his hand on Charlie's naked shoulder. Of course had he heard Embry talking about a heart attack, had listened to the frantic heart beat and was deeply worried, that he was going to lose Charlie as he just had lost Harry Clearwater.

"Is he going to have a heart attack?" Dad asked.

Charlie winced as he felt the heat radiating from his friend. I blinked my eyes irritated. Charlie's behaviour didn't help us to earn the Doctor's trust.

"No." Doc Liz informed us, when she put the stethoscope aside and checked on Charlie's other vital signs. "Where did you get that idea from?"

"Ah, well, because he has this pain in his chest and his heart is racing." My father answered.

"Chief Swan probably has a broken rib. That's what causing him pain. And the tachycardia is a reaction of what happened to him. He's responding to a traumatic event…" She explained and pulled a blanket over him avoiding that he would start to freeze. "You would call it a shock."

"What does this mean?" I asked but there was a knock at the door and with a motion of his head my dad told me to open the door. It was Seth standing there. My eyes grew big.

"Do you know what happened to him?" I heard the Doctor quietly ask Dad.

"No, we only found him in the forest." I almost choked when Dad lied at her fully in the face.

"What are you doing here?" I hissed at Seth and then I discovered Leah, Quil and Embry still in wolf form were waiting opposite the road, but at least hidden in the forest, having the vamp girl in their capture. The leech didn't dare to move an inch but still, how could they?

"You can't bring her here. She's dangerous." I snarled at Seth under my breath, carefully avoiding that someone in the house would listen to our conversation.

But unfortunately Charlie saw the wolves from his place. I heard him drawing in a ragged breath and slammed the door shut in Seth's face.

"Dammit, Jake. What is it about you?" Seth rumbled outside and knocked again. I looked at the people back in the room. Great! Now I had 100% of their attention. I sighed and open the door again.

"What do you want?"

"Sam contacted us. He's coming back. He said, they …" Seth made a sign as if he cut his own throat. "…3" Now he hinted to the bloodsucker in the back.

"Okay." I stated and blocked the view with my back. We didn't need the cute Doctor to see the wolves on the other side of the road.

"Anything else?"

Seth tried to spy into the house. "How's Chief Swan? We all want to know."

Argh. This persistent little punk. I rolled my eyes. "Did they send you here? The Doc is still with him as you see. I do not know more than you by now…" I closed the door again and walked back to the living room to stand next to my father. Doc Liz finished Charlie's examination.

"Okay, Chief Swan." She addressed him. "Your head injury doesn't need to be stitched up but I guess you've got at least one broken rib. I highly recommend an intensive check up in hospital and having an X-ray and MRI done."

"No." Charlie answered back. He seemed to finally come back to life after seeing the wolves and the leech girl so near to his house and he craned his neck to see what was going on outside. "I'm not going to a hospital. People wouldn't leave me alone there." He fingered for his pistol but found the empty holster only. He cringed and frowned. I felt sorry for him.

"You can doctor me up in my living room as well." He sat up, looking at the woman in front of him first. Then his eyes bore into mine. "Apart from that, I'm not going to lie down here like that forever…" He twisted his face, as he put his feet to the ground and started to sway. His eyes rolled into his head and the Doctor shoved him back into lying position at once.

"I wouldn't expect different from you, Chief Swan." She sympathetically smiled at him. "But for now, you better stay like this until I say otherwise." She started to clean his scratches with some liquid she pulled out of her case.

Charlie's cell phone started to buzz again and he fumbled it out of his breast pocket.

"Message from Bella." He stated and tried to press the right button to read the message but failed because of his trembling hands. He threw the cell phone over to me and actually it would have fallen down to the floor, since he still was too weak to throw it across the room. I - hearing the word "Bella" - reacted at once. I jumped forward and caught the phone before it touched the wooden floor.

Straightening up I recognized my mistake.

"Oops." I had moved so fast as no normal human could move. My father uttered a strained groan, Charlie turned his head away making a face and I stood frozen first but then started to shake. The Doc stared at me flabbergasted. She watched me. She observed me through narrowed eyes while covering Charlie's knuckles with ointment. But she didn't say a word. Her constant glaring made me nervous as heck and though I tried hard I could not hide the shaking that increased by the second. This woman was the death of me! Why couldn't I just be so bold and do if nothing strange happened at all? Instead I felt the heat crawl all over me tickling my skin.

"I don't know," I burst out. "…why you are observing us like you do." I found me seething with rage. "It was not us who did that to Charlie."

"Jacob, why don't you read the message to Charlie?" My dad chimed in and tried to save the situation.

I glared at the Doc and flipped the phone open. "There are at least 15 missing calls, Chief Swan." I told him and I saw him blink in surprise. Else he didn't react. I switched to the message folder and opened the last message coming from Bella.

"'Pick me up. I'm at the bus stop in 10… Bells.'" I read out loud. The information went through my system like lightning. Wasn't Bella supposed to come back not until Saturday?

"I'm gonna pick her up!" I hurried to say.

Charlie sat up again. To know, that Bella was coming home brought life back to him quickly.

"You can't go like this, Jacob." He said to me and rose from the sofa. With shaking knees he made his way through the room, searching after his car keys.

"And you can't drive like this, Chief Swan." I snapped. This stubborn man didn't honestly want to drive in his condition. But I had a joker: "Apart from that, your car isn't even here. You know?" I hated being rude to him again, but I wanted to be the one to pick Bella up.

Charlie rolled his eyes and groaned. "Then go up to my room and find yourself a shirt." He almost collapsed on the kitchen chair, muttering under his breath.

"Your room?" I couldn't believe my ears. Where came that sudden change of mind from?

"It's not like I could make my way up there, Jacob Black!" Charlie huffed and beckoned me away.

I jumped up the stairs and opened the door to Charlie's room. I was tempted to go into Bella's first, just to feel her, to breathe her scent. But then, no, I wanted to be at the bus station on time. Charlie's room looked almost exactly like that of my Dad. The queen-sized bed was pushed to the wall. The unused side of the bed was covered with books and files. The chair in the corner was hardly to see under its load of clothes. A shelf contained hundreds of picture frames and model cars. The desk was stuffed with still more books, files, magazines, newspaper, letters and there I found a stack of thoroughly ironed and folded shirts. I grabbed the topmost and pulled it over my head. I was so anxious to see Bella. My stomach felt as if hosting thousands of butterflies.

I stormed down the stairs again and out of the door.

"On my way." I shouted and before the door shut close I heard the cute Doctor talk Charlie into needing some rest.

When I had made my way up the path and turned into the sidewalk, the bus was already chuggling up the hill. I walked faster, but the bus passed me. I looked up to check if I could see Bella already and there she was. My heart started to race and a smile spread upon my face when I recognised her frantically knocking at the window pane and yelling my name. She was smiling all over her face and happily jumping up and down.

The bus disappeared behind the next curve and I impatiently sped up even more without making the people around me suspicious.

Gone were all thoughts about all the things that had happened this night. I felt just happy to have her back and to be able to hold her in my arms again.

Her footsteps I heard first before I could even see her. She came running up the hill. The butterfly feeling in my stomach got worse. And now I didn't care about people any more. I started running too, at least trying to keep it at human pace. Next thing I recognised was her scent. It was kind of different, so very rich and a promise holding. I flared my nose and took it in. It filled my senses and made the want to finally have her in my arms stronger than ever.

And then I saw her. She practically flew towards me. I stopped dead in my tracks. In a strange kind of way I saw her for the very first time. My heart thundered in my chest, my instincts came to life. My senses increased by a million. I could not only hear her breath leaving her lips, but also her heart pumping in her chest and her blood flowing through her veins. I the oddest thing above all that was, that I could see the glowing of her aura that surrounded her.

She was smiling so happily while she was running towards me. Everything was running in slow-motion. What was time? What was space? Just meaningless…

She approached me and jumped into my open arms.

_MINE! _The wolf in me roared as soon as her body crashed into mine. She was showering my face with kisses, laughing and crying at the same time. She talked to me, her face wet from happy tears, but I couldn't understand her. I wrapped my arms around her and strangely quiet I buried my face in her hair and pulled her flat to my body.

_MINE! _The man in me triumphed and there it was when I finally understood what was happening to me. I imprinted. On Bella.

Sam had described his imprinting on Emily as a strong pull towards her. He had talked about the imprint being the center of the universe. Peanuts! It wasn't even close to what I experienced right now. Talking about shaking me to my innermost? Talking about shaking the earth to its manifestations? Yeah, that's what it was. She had already owned a place in my heart, next to all the love I felt for my mother, my father, my entire family, my pack, my tribe. The imprinting now only made it stronger, more definite and irretrievable. I knew instinctively that SHE was the reason I was born, the reason I was breathing. I was made for her and she was made for me.

"Bella." I whispered and searched for her lips. When I found them a lightning strike bolted through me and electrified me. Bella's response to that kiss was similar. She opened her mouth to suck my tongue in and the rest of her body quasi crawled into me. I grabbed her waist and rocked my hips into her.

"Jake,…" She panted into my mouth. Oh my gosh, what was happening here? When we wouldn't stop at once, we would find us making out on the sidewalk. I ended the kiss and hugged her very tight.

"I missed you so much, Jake." Bella whispered. She reached up and plucked some leafs out of my hair.

"Your hair is longer." She recognised and then stepped back a few centimetres without letting go of my hand. She checked me up. Her eyes wandered over my face, my shoulders, my chest, my stomach, down to … _Wait. Was she looking at the bulge in my pants??? _I think I grew a bit more under her longing glare. She looked up under her eyelashes and locked eyes with me.

"You look magnificent." She murmured and then she did that lip biting thing. I almost growled.

"But you're so dishevelled, what have you done?" Her hands brushed over my hair again, trying to bring it in order and then over my shoulders and my arms. I was rock hard by now and was vibrating like a live wire. I pulled her close me again and my hips rocked into hers almost without my doing. Her hands twisted in my hair and she pulled me down to her mouth for another kiss.

"We need to talk, Bella." I eventually – after who knows how much kissing – broke the contact to her sweet lips and managed to form a coherent thought.

I grabbed her bag and took her hand and started to walk towards her home.

"We disposed of Victoria and her comrades. You're safe now." I started with. Her eyes grew big and her hand flew to her mouth. The daze around my brain lifted and I gained the ability to think again.

"Is everyone alright?" Bella asked. Her voice was shaky. "Nobody got hurt?"

"None of us got hurt." I answered, but my mind replayed Charlie getting attacked by Victoria. How to tell her what happened to her father AND avoid that she freaked out? I drew her into another hug. I remembered the fight and how easy everything went. I could be proud of my pack. All vampires killed apart from the one that Seth wouldn't get rid of. But speaking of vampires and mind over matter I could smell vampire on HER.

"What the…?" I uttered disbelievingly and sniffed at her hair.

MINE, roared the beast in me. SHE IS MINE! I started shaking as I recognized that HIS smell truly was lingering all over her.

"Bella step back." I shouted as I caught a movement out of the corner of my eye. When she wouldn't move, because she didn't comprehend my sudden change of mind, I had to push Bella aside and not one moment to soon. The raving mad vampire approached so fast that even I with my heightened senses didn't saw him coming. I received the hardest punch of my life. The mighty force of his strike knocked me off my feet and sent me flying yards-wide. I crashed face first into a brick wall and heard Bella screaming hysterically.


	20. Chapter 18

**A/N: ****I wrote the first part chapter in 3****rd**** person's POV, but leaning onto Edward's thoughts for most of the time. So please, when I use words like "mutt", "dog" or anything similar – it's Edward thinking, ok?! **

**I don't see Edward being the bad guy. He's "only" overly reacting, as all 17yrs. old kids do from time to time. But since he's a vampire the fight is on another level. LOL, **

**So, here we go!**

**

* * *

  
**

_**Finding you (again)**_

**  
Part II**

_  
Author's POV_

Edward Cullen was there, when Renee, Phil and Bella arrived at the Jacksonville Airport. The vampire had rushed ahead to get a ticket on the same flight with Bella. He had used his dazzling charm for the woman sitting behind the counter to sell him the very last ticket. Edward sighed as he followed Bella through the security area and to the gate. His eyes grazed her body. He had never seen Bella dressed up like she was now. Either it was her crazy mother's influence or Bella found her style. The vampire sighed again. She had hated to be dressed in feminine or sexy clothes and usually she had told him a thing or two, when Alice only came up with the idea of getting her into a skirt or dress. There had been only one occasion when she had worn a dress. That had been at the Prom which was now over a year ago - history.

_For HIM she did doll up?! Just like that?!_ Jealousy nagged at the vampire.

She looked more than pretty. She looked utterly sexy. She wore a knee length navy blue silk skirt and a cream colored top with matching navy blue stripes under her wool coat. The shoes, _heaven and hell,_ why had she never worn such shoes for him? Black biker boots ending under her knees with buckles and straps. He was more then jealous by now. He couldn't deny it. But he tried to ignore the feeling. Her decision was made. She was on her way back to her werewolf friend. The vampire shuddered at the disgusting thought.

She put a strand of her hair behind her ear. She had it different. It was straightened and the sleek, shiny mane covered half of her back. Edward Cullen shrugged. He had loved her curls. He liked it better, when her hair was curly.

The vampire made sure he held a proper distance from her, when they boarded the plane and later the bus, so she wouldn't recognise him. He had thoroughly dressed in clothes she had never seen on him, worn out blue jeans, an old New York Yankees hoodie and a base cap. He pulled the cap deep into his face, stuffed his hands in his pockets and slouched on his seat pretending to sleep. He didn't know what was going on in her head, since above all minds he could read, hers was closed to him. Taboo zone. But he nevertheless knew even without reading her mind that she went through hell of a rollercoaster ride of emotions. His vampire senses got flooded with constantly changing nuances of her scent. At one time stress hormones gave her scent a sharper edge, not unpleasant but not as alluring as the way she smelled minutes later, when she was lost deep in her thoughts, with a lovely flush on her cheeks and a smile on her lips. And then, shortly before arriving Forks and even more when discovering the young shape-shifter coming along the street, her smell changed further more and became so strong and rich the vampire was close to attack her and fill both his needs – the lust for her blood, as she was his singer, and the lust for her body.

Edward Cullen was fully aware, that his constant watching scared her. He tried to stop the staring, but his eyes always flipped back to her. His masquerade though was perfect. Even after intensively observing him, she didn't know that it was him. In a way he felt hurt about that. But then, he was so careful that she would never unmask him. She could be tricked easily, she only was human.

The moment when Bella saw her Jacob walking along the street was agonising for the vampire in the back row. He was witness of her happiness and how she openly showed her joy and love with knocking at the window pane and shouting out Black's name. The vampire followed her, when she jumped off the bus. He should have left her now. She was in Forks, her boyfriend approaching and as far as he could sense, no other vampires around. But he didn't. In proper distance and again very careful to avoid discovery, he stalked after her.

_I only watch,_ he told himself over and over again. But why was he feeling so gory and more then ready for a fight?

Bella hurried up the hill, since she didn't want to wait for her love to close up to her. When they finally met, Edward Cullen saw the wolf's reaction to Bella's arrival. Jacob Black took in her scent, took in her sight. Then his brain went nuts. All of his thoughts were just a big mess. Not one single coherent thought left. The vampire snorted. Had he ever been THAT lovestoned? But he was absolutely taken aback when he suddenly heard Bella's voice in his head. She wasn't talking at all, when she jumped into the wolf's arms and showered him with kisses.

_I love him__,_ he heard her thinking and then he saw how she pressed herself into Black's body with all the might she had and he so very eagerly responded to her.

_I missed him so much,_ she sighed and kissed him even deeper. Edward Cullen twisted his face.

_I want him. He looks glorious. _Her scent made the vampire like drunk and both thirsty and dizzy.

_Jacob, my Jacob. _She sobbed into Jacob's neck.

_My life is useless, meaningless without him._ She thought and the vampire cringed.

He didn't understand. What was it that he could listen to her thoughts? Did she let some kind of guard down? Did she posses a shield? And if she possessed a shield, did that mean she could control it? Unwittingly, at least? And if it was so, what did that mean for him? Could the conclusion be, that she felt instinctively safe with that testosterone reeking pup?

"_Hadn't she felt safe enough with me?"_ The vampire whispered to himself. With grieve he watched the wolf holding the girl and how this man could just follow his instinctive need and rather animalistic instincts to grind into her. But nevertheless the wolf wouldn't hurt her, since he wasn't tempted to her blood and he didn't feel the urge to bite down in that delicious pulsing artery on her neck. Edward Cullen gritted his teeth. Self loathing tendencies he had always had. So he cursed his vampire nature. He would never be able to let loose like that without setting her at risk getting killed by his own hands. He was aware how huge he had to keep the distance, since the more those two were kissing and rubbing at each other, the more alluringly Bella smelled. Her boiling blood tempted his vampire nature and fed the thirst for her blood. Oh, why hadn't Carlisle not just let him die eons ago? He would rather be dead than to suffer like he did right now. Cullen watched the mutt draw away from Bella but not without rocking his hips into her for a last time. It made Edward sick to watch them but still he couldn't walk away. He had promised to himself that he would only escort her to Forks and then leave her, but now he was standing here, lying to himself and the jealousy burned in him like liquid fire.

Jacob Black concentrated really hard now to get control over himself and his lust. The vampire heard him telling Bella about getting rid of Victoria and he saw Black's memories about Victoria violating Charlie Swan. But through those entire picture's he could hear him mentally shouting with glee.

_I imprinted. I can't believe it. I imprinted on Bella. _

The wolf's thoughts became overly territorial as he started to sniff his girl up.

_MINE! MINE! MINE!_ His brain ran amok, when he smelled vampire scent on Bella.

Edward Cullen freaked out. He'd always had a hot temper. Had he lost his love now? Without even thinking he sprinted forward. He crunched his phone to dust, as he heard Alice' incoming call.

_Too late, Alice. You can't stop me now!_ The vampire thought. He took a run-up and accelerated to full speed. Cullen crashed into Black. Satisfied the vampire knew his attack had been so fast, that he had caught the wolf off-guard. His stone hard body sent Black flying through the air. The wolf's bones protested deeply when he collided with a brick wall yards away. Both heard Bella's hysterical screams which agitated the wolf to the core, but he was confused and disoriented for a moment. Before he could be back on his feed the vampire pursued him again. He was much faster than the wolf. Speed had always been his advantage when it came to a fight. It was only a matter of split seconds. By the time this mutt was scraping off his huge body from the wall the vampire already was next to him. Cullen hit his opponent again, aiming for the jaw and causing blood and saliva to spray from the wolf's nose and mouth. The punch sent Jacob Black another yards along the road. This time he collided with one of those alley trees. The trunk splintered into million pieces and a fierce pain shot through him. His right arm broke as he wanted to absorb the impact. Black was furious. For a second time the leech had punched him before he could even react. He shook his head to clear his mind and with the other hand he wiped away the blood that spurted from his nose. The brick wall had done some damage to him, too. After all he had a much more fragile body than the vampire. In a split second Black evaluated the situation. Some times more caught off-guard and he wouldn't stand anymore. His left arm was going to be useless, so he needed a good technique to win over the vampire.

Edward Cullen watched his opponent from across the street. Though being livid this Quileute man refused to phase into his animal form. What was his plan?

The vampire wouldn't wait any longer. He wasn't the kind of guy that liked to play. A fight had to be good and swift. So he attacked his enemy quick as lightning. Black's eyes adjusted to the vampire speed and he sped up too. With a crashing sound their chests collided and Black used the vampire's body for a trampoline. His feet kicked Cullen's stomach as he pushed himself into a back-flip. He came into a stand and glared at him.

"Cullen!" He spat, pressing his injured arm protectively against his body.

"Black!" The vampire greeted him with a smug smile, simultaneously thrusting into his guts but failed. He had recognized that Black only used the left arm by now. He would use it for his advantage.

Black's left fist shoot out for a hefty punch, but the vampire quickly stepped aside and the blow met nothing but air. Black though used the momentum and instead of falling forward he dipped his head to the ground, made a twist around his own axis, jumped up and flipped again. His two feet hit the vampire one after the other into his face and made Cullen's head rock back. The vampire hissed. That one hurt.

"You followed her?" Black threatened and landed another kick with his feet in the vampire's chest. Edward Cullen was pushed to the ground. His black eyes were sparkling with the desire to kill his opponent.

"I only made sure she comes back unharmed." Cullen growled and jumped back to his feet.

"How did you know at all?" Black bent backwards as the vampire's tried to punch him again.

"I overheard your conversation." Cullen admitted, dancing around the wolf stepping away from his blows and kicks.

"You have been there all the time." Black realized. The knowledge irritated him exceedingly and all he wanted to do was to destroy Edward Cullen. But for Bella's sake, he would only teach this sparkling leech a lesson, so he would never ever come close to Bella. Swirling, twisting and kicking like a dervish Jacob Black played with the vampire. His punches and kicks hurt Cullen, but never really harmed him.

Whilst Cullen tried to avoid the punches and deal out hefty blows he was not used to the way Black fought him.

_Jasper would love to study his technique, _he thought. But for his behalf, he would prefer if Black fought the common way, like with his fists. But this guy used his whole body as a weapon, including the knees, feet, heels and toes. Maybe he should enrage him a bit more, so he would give up his Bruce Lee shit.

"I followed her everywhere, Black. She's never been alone." Cullen grinned insanely.

That really inflamed the wolf. The vampire landed a hard punch right under Jacob's jaw. Black used the energy of the blow for himself and managed to kick Cullen hard in the head before his body bent backwards into another flip. He was phasing mid-air, ignoring the burning pain in his injured arm and landed on all fours. Without hesitating he jumped at the vampire, who hardly could back away from the snapping fangs.

By this time Bella had finally closed up to the fighting creatures. She couldn't understand what happened seconds ago. She had just had this moment of pure bliss with Jacob, being so happy to have each other back. And then Jacob had been pushed from her side. Everything happened so fast, she couldn't even follow the moves or did she see who it was that had attacked her boyfriend. She couldn't stop the hysterical screams of fear when Jacob crashed into the wall and she figured out that it was Edward Cullen that punched him again and sent him flying into a tree.

"How dare he?" She screeched and shot forward. She yelled at the both to stop the fight already, but her cries and pleas went unheard. Her voice was sore from the screaming and she wondered why nobody would come for help. After all the fight took place in the open, even if the two had chased and punched each other almost to the end of Forks and close to her home. Deep inside her a strange fear spread. She knew something terrible would happen, if Jacob killed Edward. But the expression in Jacob's face couldn't be misunderstood. He went for the kill now. Bella's heart skipped a beat and she sucked in a ragged breathe. She had to do something. She wouldn't just wait the fight out. Bella had to stop Jacob before it was too late.

Jacob Black's mind was screaming bloody murder, his animal side roaring out for vengeance. He had planned to keep Cullen alive, since he knew how much he still meant to Bella. But now he saw red. Bella had been within the vampire's reach all the time. He couldn't even think about that the danger she had been in with this leech so close. He could easily have lost her to the bloodsucker. All the possessiveness of an imprinted male ruled Jacob Black's brain. Killing the person that meant danger to his imprint was pure animalistic instinct and clothed him with a power and strength he didn't know he possessed. By that time the vampire had no more chance to win the fight against this furious and wrathful wolf. Jacob attacked the vampire over and over again pushing, biting and punching him furiously.

Out of the corner of his eye Jacob saw Bella desperately pleading them to end the fight. His heart was aching. But he had the instinctive feeling that this vampire would never give up on Bella. And no one, _no one_, should ever threaten and stalk his imprint anymore. Jacob Black growled fiercely and lunged forward opening his fangs to tear the vampire's head off.

He heard Bella's piercing cry as she shouted out as if in physical pain: "No, Jacob! Don't kill him. Not again! Pleeeeease!" She sprinted forward and threw her body right in front of the leaping wolf. She stared into his eyes, pleading, horrified, affectionate. The wolf couldn't stop flying forward since he had jumped with full force to bring Cullen down. He roared out in terror when he realized he couldn't avoid the impact. The wolf crashed into the fragile body and tackled his imprint to the ground burying her under his massive body.

And then there was only silence.

* * *

_EPOV  
_

Horrified I watched how Bella threw herself in front of the furious wolf. For the first time since being a vampire I couldn't react. Though being so fast that I could have pushed her away from him, I was frozen in terror. What the hell was she thinking? How could she just try to stop us like this? His face, even if it was the wolf's snout, was a mask of sheer horror and full of agony, I simply could not not share his pain. They collided, he burying her under him. The silence was unbearable. I wanted to sprint forward now and kick him from her. Just to see if she was fine, okay? But strong hands closed around my arms and shoulders and held me in an iron grasp. Looking to the left I saw Jasper, looking to the right I saw Emmett. Man, where did they come from? They didn't look so very happy with me. Even the always smiling hunk of a vampire had an angry frown on his face.

"Dude, you messed up big time." He said and shook his head.

The shock changed into the meanwhile all too familiar fury. Alice! She had seen, of cause. I gritted my teeth. My focus shifted from my family back to Black. That stupid mutt! Had been so agile seconds ago, beating the living hell out of me? Why couldn't he just twist and get out of her way? Alice shook her head warningly, when I started to struggle to get free.

"I told you to stay away from her." Alice was shoving her little frame in front of me. She narrowed her eyes and glared at me. She looked so worried and only wanted to be at Bella's side but she hesitated, when she saw Jacob phasing back to his human form right before our eyes.

He lifted his huge body from Bella's lifeless form. His face was grief-stricken.

"Bella," I heard him whisper with a broken voice and his fingers tenderly stroked over her checks. Ugh! I hated that he touched her, that he behaved as if he owned her. I couldn't make out if her heart was still beating, since his heart was so frantically loud pounding.

"You've done enough damage for now." I heard the sad voice of Carlisle. I still was so very angry and we stared each other down, until my gaze finally moved back to Bella, who was still way too quiet to be okay. I should be at her side. My whole family was standing around me, alert and ready to pull me back, whenever I would decide to attack again.

"Jacob, let me check if Bella is alright. I won't harm her. I promise." Carlisle took one step towards Black and Bella and this mutt went territorial like a blood-hound.

"Don't come near her." Crouching over her he snarled at Carlisle furiously.

"I won't do her any harm." Carlisle repeated, but Jacob growled deep and threatening.

"Get lost!" His voice was thick with anger. He was tense. I could read that he felt being trapped. But then several Quileute guys were approaching from the forest and he was feeling safer by the second. Their appearance was quite imposing, I had to give them that. Each one of them moved with the gracefulness of the wild animal but from their minds I could pick their sharp thoughts that quickly analyzed the situation. I felt like pushed back in time. Decades ago their ancestors had made themselves known to us just like this. They were arranged in a loose 'V' with the oldest in front and the younger ones in the back. In their midst was a petrified young vampire girl. Hope sparkled in her eyes when she saw us. Which hope, I thought. We were outnumbered. I snorted. Scratch that! Counting the three youngest ones – boys still – as one we were quite equal. I heard Alice gasping and her mind displayed the vision she had had month ago. I tried not to get affected by those horrible pictures. How far would I go for my selfish wishes? Would I sacrifice my family? What sense made a fight anyway? Alice had foreseen the outcome of the fight and Bella would die, if she wasn't dead already. I groaned and cringed, but wasn't ready yet to admit that Bella would be fine and okay, if I hadn't started the fight.

I got distracted from my dark thoughts, when the biggest one of those wolf people stepped forward, and astonished I saw a young woman take over his position in front of the group. I recognized the guy to be Sam Uley and he obviously was the leader, the Alpha of the pack. His eyes were black with rage and he was hiding his nervousness about whether to talk the situation out or if simply to attack (tending to attacking us), but then he bent down and knelt next to Jacob Black and asked him a question in his Quileute language. Jacob shook his head. He kept calling Bella's name, but from where I was standing I could see no reaction from her.

The girl Leah – and I picked her name from one of the older guys who was standing next to her – was quivering with anger. There was so much hate emanating from her. She was watching us, recognizing our faces knowing she had seen one or another of us before. She was blaming us for what she was.

_Hey, it's in your genes, wolf girl. I didn't choose what I am either._ I thought when I tried to ignore her vivid memories. But she was practically throwing them at us and I learned how Sam Uley had left her after imprinting on her cousin. _What was this imprinting anyway? _She remembered the day when her body went through the final transformation and she phased for the very first time. The day of her transformation was the day her father died because of a heart attack caused by the shock that his only daughter was affected by the wolf genes, too. And she held our presence responsible of being the trigger that all those young people had to go through that life changing transformation. She was trembling heavily and could not hold her form together any longer. She phased lunging forward. Midair she decided to go for my throat and due to our fast reactions, Jasper knocked her away but being careful to not punch her too hard. My brothers wouldn't loosen their firm grip around my arms. How right they were not to trust me. I snarled and I bared my teeth as the girl-wolf growled even more upset and assaulted me again. I was still in the mood for a good fight for I despised the wolf pack, since it was literally standing between Bella and me.

"Edward! No!" Alice got into the line. What was it with the girls today to always go between a good fight?

"Enough!" Sam Uley called the she-wolf back. But his shout-out went unheard. Again Jasper and Emmett kicked the female away.

"We don't mean to fight with you!" Carlisle said and raised his hands in defence. "We came to get Edward back."

_Uhm, right, get that little bad boy back._ Annoyed I rolled my eyes.

"Why don't we just talk about it?" Alice sang and danced forward towards the wolves causing them to warningly snarl and growl at her. The Leah-wolf sauntered closer, keeping only the at least minimal space that would barely respect our personal security space. I read her mind and she was more than ready to attack as soon as she would get her chance. I flashed a sarcastic smile. We were walking on the same level here. I would be pleased if finally anything would happen but his totally unnervingly being in limbo. Jasper tightened his grasp around my arm.

I looked at Bella again, but there still was no change in her condition. But then I saw her chest was rising and falling steadily. She was still alive!

Black kept on calling her name, held her hand and sobbed sweet nothings into her ear. I turned my face away, wanting nothing more than to escape here as I felt remembered on my months of grieving and moping. To intimate was it to watch him as he tried to get her awake.

_  
JPOV_

Out of nowhere she was standing in the way and I really, really had no chance to dodge. I looked into her eyes. I saw the love shining and the trust and the desperation. There had never been a moment in my life when I wanted to die. But right now, right here I just knew that I would end my life, don't matter how, if I would kill Bella. While all those thoughts popped up in my brain, everything else happened so quickly I wasn't able to change the inevitable. I expected a huge bolt darting from the sky to burn me to cinder for taking my imprint's life. Was the vision I had to become true?

My heart stopped beating as I crashed into her. I dragged her to the ground, unable to soften the landing. All too aware I was of her fragile body hitting the road and my body landing on her.

She didn't even scream. It was silent and I was like frozen. Nothing around me existed anymore. Then I told myself that I needed to phase. I couldn't stay the massive, weighty wolf. If I hadn't killed her already, I would blanket her to death.

I propped up on my front legs and finally was able to phase. I was so scared I actually began to freeze immediately, something that I hadn't felt since this transformation program had been activated.

"Bella." I whispered. I was desperate. Shifting my weight to my healthy arm and carefully taking care that nothing of my weight would rest on her, I laid the hand of my injured arm flat over her chest and bent down to feel if she was breathing and her heart still beating. I found a strong heart beat and steady breathing. I uttered a strained groan as relief washed through me. I reached out with the broken arm and gently caressed her cheek. I was so numb I barely felt the pain in my broken arm or the soreness of my battered face. My face would be healing anyway and anytime soon. And the arm, well, I had different in mind than that right now.

"Jacob, let me check if Bella is alright. I won't harm her. I promise." A sickening soft voice talked to me. I looked up to see the entire Cullen coven standing next to Edward and their leader, formerly known as Dr. Cullen, came closer to me and Bella. My body and brain reacted instinctive and territorial. I crouched over Bella and bared my teeth.

"Don't come near her." I warned the vampire Doctor.

"I won't do her any harm." Carlisle tried to calm me, but who trusts a bloodsucker? I growled deep and threatening. I would fight to my last breath if the came to rob Bella out of my arms.

"Get lost!" I spat, refusing his help. I would get Bella to the little Doctor inside Charlie's house as soon as possible. But with all those leeches around, there would be no way to escape them without a fight and endanger Bella even more. I was trapped and I felt highly uncomfortable. My body fired another load of adrenaline in my blood system, which didn't help me at all to keep my human form and the beast in me at bay.

I heard the pack approaching and I was relieved when I saw that Sam, Paul and Jared were with them. Sam knelt next to me and asked, if I would take the lead.

_Just leave me alone, _I thought and shook my head. I wanted nothing more then to take Bella and bring her to Charlie's, where she would be safe and Doc Liz could take care of her. But I was too terrified to move her. Maybe I had broken her neck or her spine and I would damage her even worse, if I wrapped her in my arms? What should I do now? I felt so numb, my mind refused clear thinking and then I heard a strangely raw and strangled sound and realized that I was sobbing as I was whispering her name over and over again.

Her eyeballs started moving behind her closed lids and I took in a ragged breath. But else, Bella didn't move at all and her eyes wouldn't open. I felt so much pain because of what I had done to her, but I was willing to feel the pain forever if it meant that she would be okay again. I wanted, no, I needed Bella to come back to me. As long as she would only survive, I would look after her forever. I could deal with paralysis and stuff, if only she would wake up and look at me again. If she still wanted me after all this, I would stand to her to the end of our days.

"Bells, Baby, wake up." I begged. "Bells, say something." I took her motionless hand into mine and pressed it slightly to my cheek.

"Bells, can you hear me?"

__

BPOV

I realized that I probably had done the biggest mistake of my life. But it was too late already. I couldn't back away anymore as well as Jake couldn't stop the collision. The horrified expression on his face would be mirroring mine.

_I love you, Jake. I'm sorry,_ were my last thoughts before I felt the mighty masses of muscles, bones and fur crashing into me. The pure force knocked the breath out of me. I didn't even feel falling to the ground.

Everything went black.

Everything was silent.

But then, I could hear… and I listened… and I recognized two people fighting with each other. To whom would Jacob need to yell at? But was it Jacob I heard? The people were speaking a foreign language, unknown and yet familiar to me and I learned that I understood what they were shouting at each other.

"_You will never have me! No matter how long you will be waiting. I will never belong to you!" This was the voice of a young woman, angry, temperamental. Grief was sipping through her harsh words. What she said felt so utterly wrong I wanted to cry. _

_A male voice, sounding so very young still but already deep and giving promise of a splendorous man once grown out, was __shaking with fury. It spat back at the woman: "And no matter whom you will love, you shall always see my pain. You will never rest and find peace, because you will know that you actually belong to me. And when you will be lying in another man's arms, you will seek for me and long for me. But you will never have me though!"_

I heard the dry sobbing of the male voice and the high-pitched laments of the woman as they stopped to curse each other. All those grief, and oh, so much pain. I could hardly stand it. I wanted it to end.

At some point the voices faded away and I was drifting through the silent darkness again. Eventually another voice, so full of love and sorrow kept calling my name over and over. I fought to break the surface and to open my eyes. I wanted to get back to that voice because that was where I belonged. I felt wetness on my checks and tender caressing. I opened my eyes. His beautiful brown warm eyes were lingering on me. And the pain in them was heart wrenching.

"Bells."

I stirred and tried to move my limbs. I slowly bent the toes, the fingers. I took in a stuttered breath. "Jake…"

"I'm so sorry, Bells. I couldn't do anything. I just…" His voice was ragged and broken. Then his presence was surrounding me everywhere. I felt his lips on mine and his hands on my body, carefully groping if he could feel any injuries. I realized, I should be dead. How could I survive crashing into a werewolf?

"Oh, Jake." I reached out and touched his cheek. He pressed his face in the palm of my hand. "I love you." I whispered and I wanted to apologize for my stupidity and but I couldn't find the right words to explain. Too much turmoil was still going on in my mind. The voices of my dream were still echoing in my head. The memory of Edward attacking Jacob was still vivid, and the horror-stricken expression of Jacob's face, when I had thrown myself in his way, would be with me till the end of my days.

"I am sorry, Jake." I emphasized and craned my neck so I could kiss him. And when our lips met, I somehow had the feeling that – how stupid it has been at all – my intervention… had _broken a cycle? _

* * *

_**  
Part III**_

_  
EPOV_

I picked up the thoughts of another person deeper in the woods. From what I could get to know this one seemed to be walking on four feet too, though the person's thoughts were a complete mess and close to psych out. My eyes flickered over to Jasper who sensed the presence as well. He tensed and pressed his lips to a small line.

_So much hate and confusion._ He thought and he hadn't even ended this thought, when from between the trees a silvery-white wolf shot forward going for Carlisle who was closest to the forest. Leah took her chance and used the chaos to jump and snap for my throat, as Jasper and Emmett let go of me to help Carlisle. I pushed my fists into the she-wolfs fur and held her at arm's length, while she tried bite and rip my throat out.

"Leah, stop it. Right now!" Jacob Black shouted out. Whatever magic was in his voice, it stopped that furious little beast of a she-wolf.

_Jacob, you're a spoil-sport._ Leah frowned and retreated, but not without growling for another time at me. I almost smiled at her. Yes, we were perfectly equal on the 'who's the most rejected-scale'.

The Leah-wolf huffed, as she remembered that she had shredded her clothes. She preferred to stay in wolf form anyway and so she lay down to the ground, staying alert and watching us. All of the pack's eyes were pinned on the white wolf that was pressed down to the ground by Emmett and Jasper.

_Maybe he's got rabies._ One of the boys thought, as they watched the wolf struggling, twisting and growling like a maniac.

_Shut the fuck off, Call. _I heard Leah thinking letting out a small growl.

"We should talk…" I heard Carlisle saying, being the diplomatic gentleman.

"Should we?" Sam Uley asked back. His expression was quite hostile. Black was still wrapped up in his sorrow about Bella. With a little bit of luck, Bella would be awake soon and hopefully be fine. I felt calmer by the minute until I finally noticed that Jasper was playing his mind games on me. I didn't want to be calm. I wanted a good hard fight with Jacob and get Bella back. Jasper shook his head, smirking, and flooded me with more calmness.

_She's not yours anymore._ He pointed out to me silently and let me feel a little bit of those emotions that he perceived from Jacob. I hissed when sensing Black's deep-felt pain. Guilt was crashing down on me. I should have stayed away. It was my fault what had happened earlier.

"You've got this girl in your custody?" Carlisle asked that Uley guy. "We set this wolf free, if you hand this newborn over to us." Carlisle suggested.

"He's not one of us." Sam replied.

Leah stood up on all four, snarling about Sam's harsh answer.

"He's one of our kind, Sam." One of the other wolfs murmured. All of them looked at Jacob, waiting for his response but he was caught up in his own bubble.

"We would take care, that she doesn't feed on humans anymore." Carlisle explained. "She could become one of us." And then he was directing his thoughts to me: _Edward, you will take care of her. I'm tired of your moping. You need to take responsibility again._ I let out a sudden gust of air and glared at Carlisle who was perfectly ignoring me. I for very sure wouldn't train this red eyed newborn.

"Don't worry, Edward. You two will get along pretty well." Alice said in a honeyed voice which only made the wish to ram either her or Carlisle into the ground. Alice blew me a kiss and I clenched my fists. Carlisle beckoned Jasper and Emmett to let go of the white wolf. He slipped away rather quickly, self-preservation keeping him from attacking us again. While the wolf disappeared between the trees, Leah's aggressive attitude changed to absolutely jittery and without looking at any one of her pack members she turned around and followed him.

One of the younger boys in the back, who was btw totally looking like the wolf girl only in the male version, let go of the red-eyed girl. She fled from the wolves and searched shelter in Esme's open arms.

_Come on. Give it a break._ The rebellious teenager inside me groaned, but only to not give away that I felt awe for my vampire mom. When I had left Bella, she had lost the girl she had already accepted just like a daughter, but today she found a new one for that she could look after.

I heard the Quileute boys gasp in relief and my head flipped back to see what happened. Bella had opened her eyes and started to move her limbs. Seconds later Jacob scooped her up and pressed her to his body. She held on to him for her dear life. I backed away. What I found in their minds went so deep and was so profound, I could in no way do anything against THAT. I had no chance to fight THIS. To my surprise both of them weren't even aware of IT, maybe they would find out one day, maybe they would never know. Whichever part I had to play in this story, it ended now.

I felt quite silly now thinking about me throwing such a jealous fit on Black. Bella had already told me, even if it only was in her sleep, that I should go away. Instead I had been stalking her and to make things worse when I tried to kill the man she had given her heart. She had moved on, exactly like I told her when I left. Why did I throw a tantrum like a 2 year old who wanted to have his favourite toy back? I had to finally accept that and make a graceful exit, no matter how much I loathed the thought to really and actually never see her again. I had to apologize for my attack to Black and I had to apologize to Bella. I owed her, uhm, them that.

"I'm sorry." I addressed Jacob Black and Bella's eyes slowly wandered to me. I was prepared for some harsh words, I knew they would be coming, but nevertheless I was surprised by the deep-felt hatred of Black.

"Shut the fuck up, Cullen." He hissed through his teeth, getting on his feet with Bella on his arms. I could smell the adrenaline in his blood rising. The wolves moved forward as one and were aligning behind him. I hadn't noticed before that he had moved up a step and had taken the position of being the Alpha of the pack. That explained his overly territorial behaviour. He was tilting his head, his demeanour changing from being desperate just minutes ago to threatening and belligerent.

"If you ever again move your sparkling ass near Bella,…" He snarled baring his teeth. "…or if I should ever catch you stalking her again, I'm going to kill you, you sick fuck." All reason left Jacob Black and I felt he was all too willing to end my miserable life. Bella touched his arm and his heavy shaking faded away. He looked at her with so much love and tenderness in his eyes, I could have wept.

"Don't you even think of coming back, Cullen. You've done enough harm to her." Black ranted on. "If you just had seen how she was after you left her." For the shortest moment he closed his eyes and from each and every one of the wolves I got bombarded with different pictures of Bella – beginning with the night, when Sam had found her in the forest ending when finally she started laughing again. Would Bella ever forgive me? I was sure, the wolves wouldn't. Never.

Slowly I retreated, letting me pull away by my family. Jacob Black still glared at me with hate filled eyes. If it wasn't for Bella I'm sure he would have killed me with pleasure here and now. And know what, I would gladly have welcomed the death.

"You better get lost now, Cullen!" Black demanded of me. Bella was still pressed tightly to his chest and she looked up to her boy-friend and back to me. I needed to tell her I was sorry.

__

BPOV  


Edward looked so crestfallen. In a way I felt bad for him. But much more my blood was boiling. Jacob said, Edward had been stalking me? Why so? The entire Cullen clan was standing behind Edward. Had they been involved in it?

"I'm sorry, Bella. It's my entire fault." Edward said and I was stunned by my strong reaction on his words. He had the guts to apologize? Standing there with the most innocent face, angelic and beautiful as ever?

"I shouldn't have come back." He said, his voice being so velvety and smooth.

"You're right! You shouldn't!" I hissed and wriggled free from Jake's embrace. I stared at Edward and he smiled his crooked smile. It didn't charm me anymore. I noticed his clothes and I recognised that I had seen him at the airport in Jacksonville, in the airplane and that it had been him, who had been sitting behind me in the bus.

"You." I narrowed my eyes and took one step forward. "It was you behind me."

"Yes." Edward admitted instantly. I was disappointed about the fact that Edward (for whichever reason he had to do so) had preferred to stalk me, instead of talking to me.

"How long." I demanded to know irritated.

"All the time, Bella. Since you arrived in Jacksonville."

I heard Jacob huffing behind me. The Cullen's pretended to hear and see nothing to give us some privacy. It felt awkward to talk things out in front of the pack and them. Of course there was no way that Jacob would agree to a private conversation. And I had to admit, I felt a lot safer with the pack in my back. But I didn't know how much I could trust the Cullen's. Okay, let me correct. I trusted Alice and Carlisle and Esme. But I didn't know for sure about Jasper, Edward and Rosalie. Emmett, well, when the going gets rough, he would stand at Rosalie's side. No, I preferred to be just here in the middle of the road.

"You never left after I told you to go?" I asked.

"No." Edward said stiffly.

"You've been there? All the time?" I couldn't believe it and I felt soiled. I had never had any privacy being in Jacksonville? I know, there had been a time when I even liked it when he was watching over me in my sleep. But now… I shuddered.

"I followed you everywhere." He stated and held out his hands in an apologizing gesture.

"You, you, …" I ran out of words and then my feet did their own thing. I was stalking over to him, with hackles up.

"I didn't expect that from you. I trusted you would go and leave me alone." I shouted at him, which earned me an approvingly whistle from Rosalie. I looked up at her and she was smirking amused. Whatever she was thinking, Edward responded to it with a hostile hiss. But then his face turned almost emotionless again. It was only his eyes that gave way of the guilt he was feeling.

„It's my entire fault. I've done all wrong." He blamed himself. "I just needed to make sure, you're safe." I shook my head disbelievingly. He was still pulling the same number.

„YOUR fault?" I said disappointed stressing the 'you'. "You just do, what may be the best for me. But know what? You do it for yourself, for your peace of mind, for that you would feel all good and at ease with it. You don't even ask for what I think, you just do. Jacob would never do that to me." I felt so tired and I just wanted to be in Jacob's arms again. I stepped back and closer towards Jacob. Throwing a short look over my shoulder I knew he was tense, because for his means I was way too deep into vampire territory. He had arched forward and only was two steps away from me.

„I would have given up everything, just because I wanted to be with you forever. When you left, you broke my heart so entirely that I thought I would die." Those words brought forth the old familiar feeling of being rejected, of being not good enough for Edward and the echo of the hole in my chest. I felt a hot hand grabbing mine. I sighed when the painful memories subsided. I had Jacob now.

Why wouldn't Edward respond to me? He stood there so stiff and frozen. Couldn't he speak for himself?

"You told me, I'm not good for you. So why did you come back?" I asked Edward. My voice was cold, I couldn't forgive him easily. All those month of grief, all the sorrow I had caused my parents because of my stupor. I was really angry now.

I pressed Jacob's hand.

"I lied to you. It isn't true, Bella. Please forgive me." Edward's voice was strained and his answer caused me to laugh out.

"A lie? I wanted my life to end. I endangered my life just to hear your voice in my head. I thought about how to kill myself effectively. And you just say you told me a lie?" I couldn't believe it. I was done and over with Edward ad nauseam.

"If Jacob hadn't been there for me, you would probably visit me on Fork's cemetery right now." I added. I just needed to let Edward know. Maybe he would learn out of it.

Jacob's arms closed around my waist in a tight grip. It almost hurt, but I felt so utterly safe in his arms, I didn't complain. Had Jacob known or felt how close I had been?

„I've been so silly, so naive…" I shrugged my shoulders. „But know what? Maybe I should be thankful that you left, because I learned that love should be equal, lovers should be equal. But I never felt equal to you. I never felt good enough for you. I always felt, that I not deserved you. Jacob never makes me feel this way. Around him… I feel just …right."

„You have all rights to hate me, Bella." Edward responded to my long tirade. Now that I had ranted at him so badly I felt utterly exhausted. But I needed to let Edward one last thing.

„I don't hate you, Edward." I laid my hand on his arm and my eyes quickly checked on Jacob. He was tense and didn't like to have me close to him like that. But he let me reign.

„I don't hate you. You still mean so much to me. But you and I are just not meant to be together."


	21. Chapter 19

**Finding you (again)**

_**Part III **_

_JPOV_

I felt so relieved when Bella opened her eyes. My lips were on hers before I could only think, while me hands checked if I could feel any injuries. Fortunately Bella didn't seem to be seriously hurt. She moved her hands and her arms, then her legs and her feet. She would be covered in bruises and there were lots of scratches on her hands and arms, but as far as I could tell, no broken bones or internal injuries. We were just dead lucky, if you'd ask me.

The imprinted wolf in me was utterly enraged when she decided to have a word with Cullen. My human side, which could hardly hold the animal at bay, said it would be better for her, if she got things off her chest. Actually, Bella didn't talk but was shouting at the leech. That in turn made the blond vamp beauty whistle. She was smirking at Bella and obviously thinking something not too nice, because Cullen (the mind reading freak) hissed at her. He looked so very hostile for a moment that I moved forward to be near Bella just in case he went overboard. But the leech was in quite good control of himself and his face turned almost emotionless again. I didn't like the dark circles under his way to dark eyes. He looked hungry and Bella was far to close to him for my liking.

I followed their talk furthermore, ready to react at once, and when Bella seemed to need someone to hold on I took her hand into mine. At some time Bella mentioned my name, saying something Cullen didn't like to hear. He tensed and his eyes grew even darker. I arched still closer feeling highly uncomfortable near-by the leeches. Cullen avoided looking at me. His 'family' was alert, esp. his 'brothers' who were standing close to him, but they pretended to not listen to the conversation Bella had with Edward.

And talking about conversation, that was an understatement. The leech stood stiff and frozen like a statue and Bella did the talking. Why wouldn't he respond to her words? Why didn't he talk to her? She must feel terrible. Maybe she should talk to the wall over there, she would get more response from that. I huffed.

"You told me, I'm not good for you. So why did you come back?" She asked Edward. Her voice was as cold as the icy Quillayute River during the winter. I could see that she wouldn't forgive him that easily and she was irritated because of the one-way conversation, but pressed my hand reassuringly.

"I lied to you. It isn't true, Bella. Please forgive me." Edward finally answered. His voice was strained and Bella sarcastically laughed at his answer.

"You lied? I wanted my life to end. I endangered my life just to hear your voice in my head."

_She had heard his voice in her head????_ I paid even closer attention to what Bella had to say.

"I thought about how to kill myself effectively. And you're telling me you lied???? If Jacob hadn't been there for me, you could probably visit me in Fork's cemetery right now." She yelled.

_Ugh._ I shuddered and wrapped my arms around her waist in a tight grip. I had sensed her suicidal thoughts when she was so worse, but to hear it in the open, did hurt really, really badly. During those very first days when she had been in this catatonic state, she had refused eating. I let the leech know, what it had done to Charlie and me to get some food or water into her. I don't know if Bella even remembered that I had constantly been with her at that time, reading the news to her, telling her stuff from the reservation, from her school, cracking jokes and laughing at it, even when I only wanted to break down and cry because of her sight.

Cullen winced.

_Yeah, look at what you've done._ I communicated silently and bent down to kiss her hair enjoying that she leaned into my touch.

„I've been so silly, so naive…" She went on. She was slightly trembling from all the emotions she was going through. „But know what? Maybe I should be thankful that you left, because I learned that love should be equal, lovers should be equal. But I never felt equal to you. I never felt good enough for you. I always felt, that I not deserved you. Jacob never makes me feel this way. Around him… I feel just …right."

_OMG._ Her words made my stomach flip and my body tingle. I felt the heat in me rising and I pressed my body into her back.

_MINE!_ I thought triumphantly and I wanted nothing more than to kiss Bella ardently until it was only me she could be thinking of. The mind reading bloodsucker disgustedly stared at me and the tall, blond male next to him shifted his position.

"Would you mind?" Cullen whispered so quietly that Bella couldn't hear. I smirked amused.

_Don't like it? Don't listen! Stay out of my head, Cullen._ I let him know, baring my teeth in a provoking smile. Cullen snarled almost inaudible and turned his attention back to Bella.

„You're right to hate me, Bella." He responded stiffly. And I could tell by the look in his eyes, that he was shutting himself away. Bella must have noticed too, because she laid her hand on his arm, but not before quickly checking if I was okay with it. I felt no threat coming from him, but I stayed alert, just in case the mood changed.

„I don't hate you. You still mean so much to me." She said trying to console him. I knew she wasn't lying. Her following words felt just so right and I agreed to it to the fullest: "You and I are just not meant to be together."

He again just stood there like a statue, what vampires seemed to do when they were stressed. Then Cullen gritted his teeth and reached up to pinch the bridge of his nose and was up for a reply, as the cocking sound of a gun took all of us by surprise.

I mean, I knew that my father was coming. I had recognised his steps, but since he was no danger to me or Bella or the pack, I hadn't paid closer attention. Bella though jerked around, stumbling over her feet and into my arms. My pack brothers stayed relaxed, the vampires tensed. Collin slipped back into place and I had the feeling he had been send by Sam to ask my father out of the house. Bella gasped when she recognized her dad, relieved first but horrified then.

"Dad?!" She cried out seeing Charlie's battered face. Her heart skipped a beat.

"What happened to you???" She ran over to him. Charlie checked the situation, quickly taking in every detail.

"I'll tell you later." I mumbled and pulled her away from him. since Charlie was all business - gun cocked and ready to fire.

His voice was booming over the place, pure acid dripping from his tongue.

"What is going on here?" Then he discovered Edward and aimed his weapon into his direction.

"YOU!" He spat. "Can't believe, that you dare to come here." His face turned crimson and mirrored anger and grim determination. A tired smile spread across Edward's face. For very sure he was listening to Charlie's thoughts. Billy had told me, that Charlie had never really liked Edward Cullen. I didn't need to be a mind reader to see this written all over Charlie's face. And I knew Charlie well, he wouldn't allow any excuses, apologises and explanations.

Charlie narrowed his eyes and then he recognised all the fine details that normally passed unseen from human eyes.

"Oh, my god." He gasped as he realized that his daughter had dated a vampire. I almost expected him to freak out again, but to my surprise he quickly regained composure, beckoning Bella into the house.

"Chief Swan." The leech greeted him.

"House! Now!" Charlie shouted, when Bella refused to follow his order. Bella bit her lip and shook her head. "No."

Charlie looked at me, his eyes asking me to get Bella into the house. I knew better than to force Bella away from the situation. I didn't even consider it an option. I gave Charlie an apologising look and wrapped my arms around Bells again.

Charlie shrugged and turned to face Edward again. "You're going to leave my property at once, vampire. And believe me, I will find a way to kill you by my own hands, if you ever come close to Bella again." He addressed the leech, who was hiding a mocking smile not feeling threatened by Charlie in the slightest.

I snarled warningly. _Watch out, Cullen!_

"I know what you and your family are." Charlie turned to the vampire doctor. Different emotions were displaying in his eyes. After all those years that Dr. Cullen had been working in the hospital pretending to be human, Charlie must be feeling betrayed.

"Carlisle Cullen," He said. "If you're the man of honour, you made all of us believe you are, then you better make sure, no one of your 'family' will ever set a foot in this area again."

The doctor kept his countenance and nodded. "You have my word. We won't disturb you again." Then he looked at me, expecting me to say something. I knew only one thing I wanted to let them know.

"The treaty is no more." I said, letting the Alpha timbre weave through my voice. I didn't need to turn around to see, that Sam and Dad as well nodded approvingly.

"You are not allowed coming anywhere near Forks and La Push again." I pressed my claim.

Carlisle Cullen again nodded understandingly. "I apologize for the caused inconvenience."

Again I saw the mind reader hiding a sneer. This time I growled louder. "Be warned, leech." I hissed at Cullen. "I'll rip you apart, if you don't leave her alone." He retreated then and within a millisecond the whole Cullen-clan was gone. Charlie blinked and his face became ashen and pale. My dad urged him to go back to the house and Charlie followed him, without even looking at Bella.

"DAD!" She pleaded but Charlie seemed more than angry, now that the shock faded away.

"We're going to talk about all this later, Bella." Charlie said rigorously. I pressed Bella to me, when I noticed her watery eyes.

"Bells,…" I whispered into her ear and stroked over her hair. "Everything will turn out all right. Give him some time… He has a lot to deal with right now."

"Did Victoria do that to him?" She wanted to know.

"Yes, Bella. I will tell you later. I promise." I picked her up and carried her to the house, trying to carry most of her weight with my good arm.

She seemed to be absolutely worn out and I for sure didn't wonder about that. It was a lot that had happened within the last hours. I could feel its toll on me, too. She pressed her face into my chest.

"I wish I could have said good-bye to Alice." She mumbled and sighed.

"I know, Bells."

When we arrived at the house I saw Dr. Liz standing outside and I heard Charlie rapidly talking into my dad mentioning over and over again, that Billy should tell him everything at once. I felt uncomfortable with Dr. Liz listening to Dad and Charlie fighting. What would she think, hearing Charlie say things like: How could you only keep all that from me? Why in God's sake would you allow to happen that my daughter was dating a vampire?

But I could so fully understand Charlie. I hadn't felt less angry, when I finally got to know the secret. But my father was bound, too. It was Quileute law, that no one was to know about the Cold ones and our heritage, despite the ones that could phase or were their imprints.

I pressed Bella to me, remembering the day, when she found out, what I really was. She had been so brave, accepted it at once and had never rejected me for what I was.

Sam's attention was hanging on my face. It bugged on me that he didn't leave finally. Then I knew what he was looking for.

"You can go now, Sam. We come along pretty well now." I said, feeling my face blush.

"No way, Jake!" Sam murmured. His eyes flitted back and forth between Bella and me. She buried her face in the crook of my neck, to avoid his staring.

"She isn't even native!" Sam said disbelievingly and scratched his head. Charlie and Billy stopped their dispute.

"Who said that she isn't." Charlie chimed in. „Who cares about that at all?" He snapped at Sam.

"Yeah, who cares? I don't!" I rumbled. I didn't even know Bella had a native background. I would ask my dad about it later. He would know.

"What are you talking about?" Bella asked, while I sat her down on the sofa.

"Later, Bells. I'll tell you later. Everything." I wanted to have a private moment to tell her I had imprinted. I tenderly kissed her. "I want the Doctor to look at you." Bella didn't dispute. She was so exhausted that she could hardly keep her eyes open.

To cut a long story short, Bella asked Dr. Mauna up to her room. I finally persuaded Sam to leave, since he wouldn't stop bothering me with his staring. He wasn't needed here anyway. Plus Emily would be waiting for him. Charlie and Billy stopped discussing and ended up in the kitchen eating cold leftovers. And when the little Doc came back from Bella I agreed that she took a closer look at my arm.

After all her observing and watching from before I expected her to ask a lot of questions. But she was perfectly quiet and didn't mention what she had seen and heard.

"Don't worry about your girl-friend." Doc Mauna said. She beckoned me to have a seat on the sofa.

"She is going to be all right." She took my arm in her hands. Then she closed her eyes while her fingertips ran over my fingers to the wrist up my elbow stopping at my shoulder.

I backed away. "What are you doing?"

"Hush! I'm only looking for fractures." She opened her eyes and smiled. "You can trust me."

"Hmpf. Ouch!" I winced when she touched a tender spot. "Wouldn't you need X-ray?" I asked through my gritted teeth. Hello, it hurts!!!

"No." Doc Liz shook her head. "I can perfectly 'see' through my fingers. It runs in the family, you know. I need to close my eyes, touch my patient and concentrate. Then the info pops up in my head."

"Awesome." I was truly impressed. She stopped the examination and pulled a brace of her case. "How long will it take you to heal?" She asked while she prepared the brace.

"Hu?" I lacked of words. I had been so damn right that she would find out. And how long did it take her? Five minutes of observation? I sighed and buried my face in my hands, of course hurting the injured arm in the process.

"There's more strangeness in the world than you know, Jacob Black." She smiled again. "So, how long do you think you will need to heal?"

"It's broken?" I croaked. What more oddness existed out there? Would she tell us about it?

"Simple fracture." She buckled my arm into the brace. I made a face. Who friggin' needs an immobile right arm?

"Two days, maybe three…" I answered her question.

"There you go." She closed her case. "I will come back tomorrow to make a check on Chief Swan." She said out loud, so Charlie would hear. Charlie nodded. "Will you be there and may I have a look at your arm?"

"Sure, sure." I agreed. Maybe I could ask her, if she was interested in treating the packs injuries? We would need a doctor from time to time.

Liz Mauna left the house and I headed for the stairs.

"Where are you going?" Charlie's harsh voice from the kitchen stopped me. I could tell by the look in his eyes, that he didn't like me around his daughter. But I didn't like to be separated from Bella for any minute longer.

"Bella." I snarled and felt the angry heat crawling up my skin. After all we had done for him, he should finally trust me.

"Charlie, if you're wise you better let him go to her." My dad chimed in.

"What?" Charlie stared at his old friend.

"Just saying…"

Dad walked over to the living room and switched on the TV. "Loosen up, old guy. Jake will perfectly take care of your girl. And now come over and watch the game." He slumped into the sofa and padded the spot next to him. "Bring some beer, Charlie. We've got a lot of talk to do."

Charlie glared at me and finally gave in but not before hissing: "Keep it in your pants, Jacob."

I blushed tremendously and snapped back: "What do think we're doing up there?"

Charlie strolled into the living room and turned around to warningly look at me for another time. "Just saying…"

I walked up the stairs, taking two steps at once and knocked at her door: "Bella, can I come in?"

Bella asked me in and I slipped into her room. She was sitting on her bed, legs pulled up to her chest, head resting on her knees. Entering her room I was wrapped up in her presence at once.

"Have you been crying?" I wanted to know. She shook her head but there was a look of concern on her face.

"What happened to Charlie?" She asked me, running her hands through her hair. Only now I recognised she had it straight. And I found that I very much loved it. Maybe it was because I was used to straight hair from the girls on our rez? Or maybe it was because it made her look more feminine?

"Victoria happened." I let her know and closed the door behind me.

"But how… when…" Bella asked confused. I sat down on the edge of her bed. I wanted nothing more then to dispel her worried thoughts. Us – sitting so close to each other - felt familiar and yet new and sort of awkward. I fidgeted with my fingers.

"Victoria had some…" I huffed. "…fun with him, when we tracked her down."

"What did she do to him? He looks terrible." That was when she started to tear up. I felt sorry for her and I wished we would have found Charlie earlier. We could have spared him getting tortured by the red haired devil.

"She'd been playing punching bag with him." She winced at my words, but I wanted to be honest with her. I leaned closer to her. "But he didn't give in easily. Actually, Charlie's a brave man." I had no other option then to admire Bella's father at this point. If only he could loosen up a bit and get used to me.

She nodded, but her eyes were huge. I wanted to loose myself in them. Being so close to her made me feel dizzy in a way that I very much liked. The atmosphere around us changed to stuffy with every minute.

"Has it been a rough fight for you too?" Bella scooted over to me. Her skirt slid up and exposed her bare legs almost up over her thighs. I found it rather hard to keep my eyes on her face.

"No, it was almost too easy. She was so wrapped up in her frenzy…" I whispered, my eyes wandering from her legs over her body up to her lips. She didn't speak. It was her tongue sliding over her lips that made my breathing becoming heavy. She wrapped her arms around my shoulders and pressed her face cheek to cheek with mine.

"To Charlie – Victoria happened. To you - Edward happened." She sighed and her breath blew over my chest. I shuddered and goosebumps would form on my skin.

"I hate that he hurt you. I never imagined he would do that. I'm sorry." Her hand stroked over my shoulder down to the brace on my arm.

"You're apologizing for what he did? Why would you do that?" I asked her.

"I didn't expect him to come back… after all." She said musing with a frown on her face.

"Do you regret that Cullen's gone now?" The thought of him made me angry. I hated that she was thinking about him. Even if she was blaming him right now.

"No, absolutely not. He was not right to make a scene like that." She kissed my neck and I was relaxing because of what she said and tensing because of what her lips were doing to me.

"What did the Doctor say?" I asked her to distract myself. As much as I would love to do certain things to her, there were our Dads sitting downstairs which was kind of freaking me out. _The Dad guard, yeah, right. _

Bella let go of me and sat down next to me. She stretched her legs and let them dangle over her bed. I couldn't stop looking at her wiggling toes and her well-shaped calves. Would she mind if I touched her legs?

"She's really nice. But a little bit strange. She can see things through her fingertips." Bella said and pulled her skirt down.

I pretended to be totally cool and pointed to my braced arm. "Same with me. Just touching and than she knew that the arm is broken." Would Bella hear my heavily pounding heart?

"How bad is it?" She asked and a new frown appeared on her face. Again she was touching my arm. Then her hand cupped my check. My breathing hitched. "Simple fracture, no big deal." I managed to say.

"Does it hurt?" She tenderly touched the skin were the brace ended. A tingling spread over that place.

"Not. so. much."

Bella bit her lip. She better stopped that or I would be nibbling at those lips. "What else did she say?" She asked pulling me out of my fantasies.

"Nothing of big importance." I huffed. "She just meant, there're more odd things than vampires and werewolves."

Bella snorted but with a smirk on her face. "You're lucky. I had a sex talk with her." She rolled her eyes, her cheeks blushed adoringly.

"Sex talk?"

"Yeah, same old story. Being responsible, using contraception and stuff… I told her I'm on the pill." Bella blurted out. "She was fine with that."

"On the pill." I choked out. "Since when?"

"Oh, just before we wanted to go to Jacksonville. I thought it would be good if I'm prepared." She answered honestly, but with that cute blush on her cheeks. I guess I had my heart in my throat by now.

"Listen, Bells." I croaked, wanting to apologize. I needed her to know that I hadn't let her down without a reason. "I'm sorry that I stood up on you. I have been out for over two days, and then your dad wouldn't give me your number…"

She quietened me with pressing her finger to my lips. "It's okay, Jake. I'm not angry with you. It was just destiny." She leaned closer and started to pluck the grass and dirt out of my hair.

"If you haven't been here… Charlie wouldn't…" She didn't complete the sentence. She concentrated on detangling my hair. It was so sensual to have her fingers sliding through my hair.

"I like your hair that long…" She mumbled and tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear. "Almost at chin length…"

"And again I skipped a few years in two days…" I slurred. Her touching made me royally dizzy.

"You look mesmerizing, Jake…" She said licking her lips. I was close to just throw myself at her.

"Edward hurt you pretty bad." Bella examined my cheekbones and the already fading bruises. "But you're a fast healer. I wish I would heal so quickly."

"Is it that bad?" I asked and reached out for her. The tingling sensation of her fingers on my skin caused my eyes to close. But then I felt her wincing as my hand closed around her hip and loosened my grasp.

"I'm going to be green and blue all over my chest by tomorrow." She shrugged her shoulders.

"I'm sorry, Bells." Without my doing my good arm snaked around her waist and as gingerly as I only could I pulled her into my lap. "I didn't want to run over you."

"It was my fault, Jacob." She whispered and kissed my shoulder again. "And now, will you let me take care of you?"

She slid from my lap and took my good hand pulling me up.

"Come, Jake. Let's get your face clean." She pulled me over to the bathroom and made me sit on the edge of the bathtub. Then she wetted a washcloth and tenderly wiped off the dried blood and dirt from my face. Again my eyes would close and I bathed in the sensation of her tender care. When she stopped I looked at her and found her eyes hanging on my lips. She was biting her lip again and crumbled the washcloth in her hands.

"Bells." I croaked and put my good hand on her hips. With a little pressure from my fingers I urged her to come closer. I opened my thighs so she could stand between my legs. Her breathing hitched as my hand moved to her waist.

"My room, Jake."

We stumbled back to her room and she closed the door with a loud thud, leaning at the wooden frame. My lips found hers and as before, as soon as we made contact the electric sparkling in my body appeared again. She moaned into my mouth and grabbed my hair. All those raw emotions I had experienced over the last 24 hours were now crashing down on me: the shock to find Charlie in Victoria's capture, the thrill of haunting Victoria, later on the fear about Charlie's bad condition, Bella coming home, my imprinting on her and finally Edward attacking me and I almost killing my imprint. I was flooded with a load of adrenaline and testosterone and I felt a deep need to claim Bella as mine. I wanted to be all over her, fill her senses with my presence, leave my scent on her skin, making her scream my name and burn my picture into her head.

I grabbed her soft round butt and lifted her up. She wrapped her legs around my waist.

_Oh, yes, that's where I wanted her to be._ I pressed my hips into her. Bella was literally burning up. Her body temperature rose and I could smell how much she wanted me. My kisses became deeper and more passionate. I couldn't stop my animal-me coming to life. I fought hard to not let me overwhelm by my wolf-self, though I couldn't control handling her a little rougher than I intended. She didn't complain first, instead she threw one arm around my neck and invited me to come in even closer. I didn't think about my broken arm or her bruised body anymore, when she reacted like that. I pushed her against the door rocking my hip into hers. But then we both gasped for air as the pain forced us to stop.

"Sorry, I didn't want to hurt you…" I apologized but she stopped me and placed another kiss on my lips.

"We have to try different then." Bella said. Her eyes were sparkling. Whatever it was that drove us – the after battle stress or just pure lust – we both seemed to be in desperate need for release.

"I need you, Bells." I heard myself begging and crushed my lips down on hers.

"I need you too, Jake…" She groaned rubbing against my hardness. I let her take my hand and lead me to the stool at her desk. She made me sit down and then straddled me. Her skirt rode up again and bared her thighs.

"Bells…" What was going to happen? I bent down to rest my head on her shoulder as she scooted closer into my lap and the scent of her arousal surrounded me. She rubbed her hand across my stomach, trailing along the abs. I grabbed her hand, when she wanted to move into the waistband of my pants.

"Ah, wait, Bells." I groaned. As much as I wanted her to touch me there, I still had in mind what her father demanded before he would let me go to her. I didn't want to betray him. Her face flushed again and I understood she was just the same insecure as I was. I expected her to break the close contact to me but instead she bucked her hips, pushing against my cock and creating a nice friction between us.

"Thank you Jake. For saving Charlie."

"That's what I am here for." I almost couldn't think straight with her doing this hip thing. If she would go on with what she did, we would be moving our relationship up to a whole new level. Not that I would complain.

„Thank you for being there for me all the time." She whispered into my ear. "I terribly missed you in Jacksonville. And I was so scared something bad happened to you. I realised how much you mean to me. I love you, Jake." She was trailing kisses from my mouth to my ear and finally was nibbling at my earlobe.

"You don't have to thank me... like that." I panted feeling all woozy.

"But I want to." She answered back and then with a sexy husky edge in her voice she asked: "Doesn't the glorious warrior deserve being thanked?" Her hands were sliding up and down my back, my chest and my stomach. I thrust my aching cook against her thigh.

"But not like this, Bells."

But, oh, how much I wanted her to thank me exactly like this. My head was swimming. I wanted to touch her too, but it was almost impossible with the one arm trapped in the sling and the brace and the other one needing to have a hold on Bella and pressing her tight against me.

"Let me do this for you, Jake. I really, really want it." She kissed me again. Her lips were so soft and wet and tempting. Her tongue would be exploring my mouth. I gave in then freely. Which guy would reject such an offer, hu? She found a good sensual rhythm with moving her pelvis against my thighs. It seemed to please her too, her kisses became deeper and her breath became ragged. Her hands closed around my biceps, her head fell back, her legs twined around mine. The pure sight of her almost made me come undone.

"Bells" I heard myself growling and she was moaning in response. "I'm gonna…" I was panting heavily by now. "Stop, Bells, else… I'm gonna…"

"That's the plan, Jake…" There was that sexy smirk again and her rubbing at me became even more purposefully.

"But I'm … I don't … into… Bells, stop. My pants… Your dad." There was no way I could walk out of her door with a wet spot on my pants.

"Oh." She stopped, thinking. Then she grabbed for a piece of clothing which seemed to be a top of her. "Here, use this." "But it's …" I objected, but all reason left me, when she put her hand on my cock and started rubbing me through the pants. "Shit. Bells." I bucked my hips into her hand causing her to groan. I didn't hesitate any longer. I stuffed the top into my pants and over my cock. Then I put my arm back around her waist to hold her as close as only possible. She was already grinding into me again, causing this delightful friction.

My groans became louder and more desperate.

"Bells…" I was so close.

"Shhh, be quiet, Jake" She pressed her lips on mine to stifle our moaning. Her hips were thrusting into me more frantic now too. Her scent was just so overwhelming.

"That's right, baby. Just like this…" I whispered into her ear. She was using me to give herself pleasure. I nearly lost it at that thought. I slid my tongue into her mouth, while she moved her hand up and down between us. She shuddered and I moved my hips upward to increase the pressure. Bella arched her back and cried out digging her nails into my back and biting into my lower lip.

And I came just then, holding on her waist for dear life and fell apart in the most delicious way. She panted and managed to throw her legs around my waist. I growled into her neck enjoying her dry-humping on me. And while riding out my orgasm, I aimed my thrusts to where her sensitive spot had to be.

"Jake…" Bella gasped and pressed her body flush against mine. She shuddered and tensed and with a last thrust I pushed her over the edge. Satisfied I heard her screaming my name, not caring in the slightest, whether her father would hear her. I held her close to me until she came down from her high.

"I love you, Bells." I whispered into her ear and kissed her neck, her throat, her chin and her lips.

"And I love you, Jake." She answered and kissed me back. I stood up and carried her to the bed. I laid her down, sliding next to her. She snuggled into my embrace and I guess we fell asleep for a few minutes.


	22. Stand my ground

**A/N: I just figured out the story was missing this chapter. I added it were it belongs (between chapter 19 and chapter 20). Don't be confused. LOL Maybe you just check the chapter before and the chapter after, so you know. I named the chapter "Stand my ground", but this name maybe changes under the revise of the entire story. Maybe you already noticed, this story undergoes changes. I added a prologue, and the chapters 1 - 4 are already revised. Maybe you want to re-read these and leave me a review, telling me what you think about it. Thanks and hugs and kisses.  
**

* * *

**_Stand my ground_**

**_JPOV_**

I thought I had been sleeping for some minutes but obviously it were only seconds, because I startled when hearing some chinaware crashing and my Dad and Charlie shouting at each other like crazy. I realised that Charlie had been hearing Bella and that my Dad tried to keep him from storming into this room and kick me out of the house. Maybe I should be embarrassed but I truly wasn't. I didn't care at all. I was too happy to let him ruin the moment. I found myself wrapped up all around Bella who was still sleeping. I arranged myself into a more comfortable position since my body meant it could go for a second round. Taking care of not waking her up, I pulled the top out of my pants and stuffed into my pocket. I would wash it and give it back to her later. Then I lay back again, ignoring the angry voices downstairs and just stared at her, indulging in the moment. Had it really come true that she made up her mind and picked me over the leech? I'd always had the feeling that there was still a part of her that was clinging to him, that she wouldn't give up hope that he came back one day and she could be with him again. I had noticed that she was still hesitating, even when she began to fall for me. I had been prepared to forever deal with her broken soul. I had been willing to be some kind of replacement, if it just meant she would live up again. I loved her so much, that I wanted to do that for her.

But would I have been able to deal with him coming back and losing her to him? Before imprinting - hardly to imagine. But after imprinting - Impossible! A growl wanted to form in my chest. There was no way I could share her in any way with HIM, a BLOODSUCKER beyond that. I couldn't stop the growl to escape my throat. I startled about the pure instinctive reaction that not only made me growl but also snarl and narrow my eyes. I even felt the all too familiar trembling of my body that spoke from the need to phase and fight. I deeply inhaled and forced myself to calm down again.

_Focus, Jake! _Since when were the wolf genes the stronger part of myself? I remembered so very clearly when Dr. Cullen had tried to convince me that he only wanted to check that Bella was okay and I had denied him to come closer. I had been beyond any reason at that time. One step ahead and I would have attacked him. Same with his bloodsucking son minutes later.

To calm down I remembered the moment when she had kissed me in front of all of my pack members AND the leech and how she had given Cullen some tough arguments to deal with. I was pretty proud about that. Things had changed. I had imprinted on her and she reacted to the imprint pull. I brushed a kiss on her forehead, which made her scooting closer and as if our contact wasn't close enough already, she wrapped her leg around mine. She didn't know yet and I longed to tell her as soon as possible, that I had imprinted on her _– how could that be anyway?_ _Didn't our legends tell imprinting was a love on first sight-thing?_ Could it be that my imprinting on her had battered down whatever wall she had built to protect herself from getting hurt that much again? Or was it a simple reaction of the imprinted to his imprinter? But then I considered that she had been different already when I had called her in Jacksonville. She had been so desperate to be with me again, so worried about my safety, that she had taken an earlier flight. And her joy and the shine in her eyes, when she had seen me again, had been honest and pure. There was no hocus-pocus imprinting chemistry at work then.

To be straight honest, I had been afraid of imprinting. Not because of imprinting itself, but of imprinting on another girl than Bella. I had seen on Sam and Leah how badly it could end. Imprinting had destroyed a happy love there and left three people mostly unhappy. Sam couldn't forgive himself for hurting Leah, Leah was left heart-broken and Emily felt forever guilty for being the cause of the curse. I had been horrified that something like that would happen to me and Bella as well.

I shook my head to dispel the heavy thoughts. I was a man of action not the big thinker. And talking about action, my next kiss aimed for Bella's lips and she opened her eyes. She looked somewhat bewildered through still heavy lashes.

"I'd this strange dream again…" She whispered more to herself.

"Tell me…" I run my nose through her hair, taking in her scent. I felt my body reacting to our intimate position.

"Can't remember clearly." She whispered.

"It was this woman and that boy fighting and shouting at each other…" Her hand ran over my arm as she concentrated on the reverberation of her dream. Heat was pouring from every pore of my body. Then she heard the arguing men downstairs and winced.

"Maybe I just heard our fathers. What are they quarrelling about?" She asked only breathing the last words, when she saw me staring at her.

"Seems, Charlie took notice of what we did..." I answered. My voice suddenly was very husky and the blood rushing down to that part of my anatomy that had his own life.

"Oh." She said blushing, pressing wittingly or unwittingly against me. I could not help myself but to press back. A low moan fell from her lips and my hair stood on end. As did my… Oh, well. I shifted my position.

"Did you like it, Jake?" Bella whispered and her fingers started trailing patterns along my chest. She looked at me in a way that made me shiver with delight. I bent down and kissed her.

"Very much, Bells." I mumbled and let my tongue trail over the line of her lips. "I would hook up with you anytime again. Like, right now." I wrapped my hand in a strand of her hair.

Bella ran her nose over my chest and buried it in my arm-pit. She took in a deep whiff and I shrank back.

"Ah, don't, Bells. I haven't showered yet…" I guess I was blushing to my toes.

"You smell just fine. Like man and fight, …" She smirked at me.

"You're scaring me." I chuckled under my breath and put my hand under her chin to lift her face up. "Is it still Bella in there?" I tapped at her head, which made her laugh in response.

I stopped teasing her when I heard someone approaching the stairs: "Jacob. I wanna go home now. Come down." It was Dad. He sounded sort of worn out and tired and didn't even raise his voice, knowing I would hear him anyway.

"I think our time's up for today, Bells." I put my arm around her. How could I just go and walk away from her? She practically crawled into my arms.

She sighed. "I don't want you to leave yet."

"I don't want to go either." I sat up, but she was like glued to me. So I held her in my lap and kissed her again.

And again.

"Jacob." My father was getting impatient which bothered me in return. Couldn't he give me a minute to say goodbye to Bella?

"Coming, Dad." I called out quite rude and made Bella sit down on the bed. She shifted to find a more comfortable position, but every part of her body seemed to hurt.

"You should grab some sleep, Bells." I suggested, while I stood up and let the fingers of my good hand slide through her silky hair once more.

"No, I'm coming down with you." Bella answered back leaning into my touch.

"Your Dad is very upset." I warned her, when I heard him furiously hissing at my Dad. Her arms entwined my waist and she pressed her face into my stomach. My muscles twitched in anticipation.

_Focus, Jake! _I reminded myself, but my hand run through her hair and pressed her head tighter into me.

"Let him be,…" She murmured and lifted her head to look at me. Her breath flowed over my navel which was fucking sexy in itself, but then she even kissed me there and my breath left me in a big gush.

"Bells," I stopped her, when I heard my father's low growl. _It's a drawback that Dad's having wolf senses now,_ I thought to myself.

"We really shouldn't overstrain their patience." Frustrated I clicked my tongue and snaked out of her embrace.

"What patience?" She huffed disappointed. Good to know that she felt the same.

I opened the door, she took my hand and then we walked down the stairs to meet Charlie.

I expected things getting really, really ugly. He didn't want me to be that kind of close to Bella, he had heard and he had made his conclusions. I was curious how he would react. Not that I welcomed arguing or stuff, but I wasn't willing to give in either. He couldn't forbid me to be with Bella. I had done no wrong and he couldn't just lock up his daughter like Rapunzel. This was ridiculous. I would stand up against any order, that would separate me from Bella. Period. Nothing and no one comes between the wolf and his imprint. Not even Charlie Swan. I could feel the aggression rolling off me in huge waves. And Charlie also looked as if he was more than willing to kick my ass. His fists were clenched and he gritted his teeth.

"Jacob." He spat, his eyes glaring hostile, when he watched me and Bella walking hand in hand down the stairs.

I planted myself in front of him, straightening up to full height. My pulse rocketed, but else I managed to stay perfectly calm and still.

"Charlie! Jacob!" My Dad shot us warning looks. He seemed to be very upset about Charlie and concerned about what I was going to do. He beckoned Charlie as if demanding from him something to do. Bella shoved forward, positioning herself in front of me in a protective stand. I almost laughed. She was so cute, trying to protect me from her father. But wasn't I the one that should protect her? I laid my arm around her shoulder and pulled her close to me, so we were standing equal side by side. Charlie opened his mouth and shut it close again. My father cleared his throat and walked next to me.

"Charlie…" He repeated, waiting for Charlie something to do or say. I thought it would be good to do the first step and smoothen up the tension.

"Chief Swan," I addressed him properly. _Courtesy may be my new middle name. Hmpf._ "Be assured that my intentions with Bella are absolutely…" I stopped. What nature where my intentions? Wasn't it quite natural to love not only emotionally but physically, too? I filled in full-heartedly: "…honorable. I will never hurt her like HE did. I promise."

Charlie coughed a sarcastic laughter _– yes, thank you very much for your trust in me -_ but before he could start with whatever tirade he wanted to come up, my father drew in a deep breath and beckoned him again.

"I owe you thanks, Jacob." Charlie stated and for once my jaw dropped. From the corner of my eye I saw my dad nodding approvingly.

"Uhm, Charlie… No, you don't need to…" I chimed in, feeling the blood rushing into my face. It sounded so very much of an apology. First, I didn't want a man like Charlie having to apologize for anything he had done, because Charlie did was for the good of others. He had been acting in the course of his duty. Second it felt more then weird he was thinking he owed to thank me. I felt embarrassed that obviously my dad forced him to say those things. He shouldn't do that.

Though it seemed Charlie would rather bite off his tongue than to go on, he continued: "If I had stayed away from the reservation, just as you said, then…"

At this moment realization struck him hard. He clutched his chest again and sagged on one of the kitchen chairs. "Maybe Chief Woods would still be living…" He whispered. "We escorted Burkhardt to the Resort, but then he escaped. We did what was our job. We had to follow him."

I bent down and slightly touched his hand.

"If I had been in your situation…" I assured Charlie. "I probably would have done the same."

Charlie shook his head and looked defiantly into my eyes.

"You saved my life and I don't know how I can ever make this up…"

"Charlie, you don't need to make up for anything. You did your job and I did mine. We should leave it at that." I countered.

Bella walked next to her dad.

"Dad…" She was leaning into an embrace to comfort him, but he shrank back. I saw Bella wincing and then she bit her lower lip. "Dad?"

Charlie didn't hide, that he felt betrayed. A hurt expression darkened his features. "How could you, Bells? And don't try to make me believe, that you didn't know whom you were dating."

"Uhm…" Bella stared at me and back at her Dad, obviously guessing out to which one of us Charlie was referring – Edward or me. She decided to go for agreeing but not spoiling the whole truth.

"You're right, I knew. I found out rather quickly." She whispered. Charlie rubbed his face.

"Did it never cross your mind that you should have told me?"

She shook her head, her eyes dropped down to the ground. "It was not my secret to tell. Besides how could I tell you?" I noticed how conflicted she was.

"Oh, by the way, Dad, I dated a vampire. And my new boyfriend is a werewolf." She mocked sarcastically. But she didn't feel funny about it. She was kind of desperate and I realized how much of torment it must have been for her to go all through this without having someone to tell about the whole truth. She had had no one to openly talk when her pain was worst.

Charlie huffed and crossed his arms in front of his chest.

I spontaneously offered Bella my hand and she willingly took it and not only that she snuggled into an embrace, she also stole a kiss from my lips.

"Jacob has not only saved your life, Dad. He and the pack also saved mine. The vampires were after me, for some reason…" She stated leaving out further details, but Charlie understood nevertheless.

He pressed his lips together tightly. They turned white from the force. He nodded.

"I see and I'm thankful for that, too. Jacob, tell your friends I'm very grateful."

I've had just enough.

"Look, Charlie. I don't want this. You don't need to thank me. Seriously!" I blurted out. "For me it's quite natural. We aren't named 'protectors' for no reason. So please, let it be." I shook my head. "I don't hold grudges, you know…" I added and stepped back.

My father took this as a sign to leave. He walked through the door, nodding Charlie goodbye. "See you tomorrow, buddy." He said tapping the rim of his hat. I followed my dad outside and stopped at the porch. Dad's face was smug and smiling and looked like the cat that ate the canary.

Bella was standing next to me, observing my Dad. I had to give her credit: She was good at weird. She was so much used to strange things by now, that she didn't even asked about him being able to walk.

"I'm going to come back later in the afternoon." I snaked my arm around her waist and pulled her flat to me. She sighed, leaning into me.

"I will miss you, Jake." Bella said and I – feeling the separation come – noticed a strange tugging in my chest. Was this that kind of pain that reminded you that you were separated from your imprint? I had heard Sam talking about that with Jared. I buried my face in her hair.

"I have to meet with the guys. We need to reflect everything and report to the council as well."

With a little luck of mine Sam had already spilled the beans and the pack knew about me imprinting on Bella. I would prefer tell them by myself but than, who cares. They all would know as soon as we would be phasing for the next time.

"You know where to find me." Bella whispered into my ear which gave me the shivers. Her voice was holding promises.

"Jacob?" Charlie called out. I turned around and saw him standing in the door frame. "I shouldn't hold grudges, either."

I was absolutely taken aback when he closed the distance and took me into a big man-hug. For being mere human he had quite a good strength in his squeeze. We both grunted over the pain our broken bones caused us.

"Are we cool, Jacob?" He asked a little pale around his nose and let go of me.

"Very cool, Charlie." I grinned and kissed Bella on her sweet lips. Charlie rolled his eyes but held in every snappy remark.

I walked over to the wood side rushing after my Dad.

"Will you be walking to La Push?" Charlie asked bewildered. I blinked at him and grinned again, wider this time.

"If I wasn't to wear this brace, I would phase and my old man here would do the walk all alone. I'd be running, you know." Though I couldn't ignore at all the tugging in my chest, I nevertheless felt so buoyant and delighted I had to laugh out loud and full-heartedly. For the first time in like months I had the feeling that I was walking on the bright side of life. I had done a good job leading my little pack into a battle and bring them back home fine and alive. We had saved lives. I knew Bella would be safe. And I was on a good way to be alright with Bella's father. I had imprinted on the girl I had loved for so long and she was giving this love right back to me. And the icing of the cake was that I'd been physical with my girl, which was friggin awesome and craved for retry.

What more could a man want?


	23. Chapter 20

**Getting along with Charlie**

**A/N: You wouldn't believe it but I suffered a serious writer's block. LOL, anyways. First part of that chapter is written in my POV (was the easiest way for me to come around the writer's block), second part told by Bella. **

_**Author**__**'s POV**_

"Come inside, Isabella. Now!" Charlie Swan ordered. It was about time to talk different stuff out. It wasn't that he was most angry about Jacob Black and his daughter making out loud enough for him to hear it – Swan's head shaded into a bright crimson - but what really and entirely bothered him was the fact, that his daughter had known everything about the vampire/wolf-thing AND had been so close to the Cullen family, knowingly risking her life. How could she do that to him?

Looking at Bella, Swan knew that she expected to be chided and she expected that it wouldn't be fine at all. Charlie Swan hated to raise parental style discussions. But now it was unavoidable. Quietly Charlie Swan turned around and walked into the house. His back was rigid and stiff, which told his daughter about the great extent of his anger. Her father wasn't the kind of man who exploded at every given opportunity. Bella tried to catch a last glimpse at Jacob, but he was already gone. Her fingertips flew to her lips that were still deeply red and swollen. It was strange for Swan to see his daughter like that. He still couldn't accept that she was a young woman now and not a child anymore.

He took a seat at the kitchen table and mentioned his daughter to join his company.

"Sit down." He ordered. His voice was stern, more than he actually wanted. Her gaze lingered at his battered face and tears wanted to well up in her eyes. Swan could hardly keep his left eye open. Also the left side of his face was hurting like hell. Bella took a fresh cold pack out of the freezer, wrapped it in a paper towel and tossed it over to her father. He pressed the cold pack to his face which soothed the aching at once. Bella nervously looked around until she sat down on the chair opposite me.

"I don't even know where to begin, Isabella." Her father hissed through his gritted teeth. He regretted his harsh voice at once, but he felt so angry about everything that he just couldn't get a hold on himself.

"I'm sorry, Dad." She said and flushed. "I never wanted to lie to you." Her eyes dropped to the table.

"But you did lie to me. Fully aware of it." Charlie spat. He hated being lied to.

"I had no choice, Dad. Please understand that." She pled and fidgeted with her hands. Swan felt sorry with her, of course, which dad wouldn't? But he wanted her to understand his feelings as well.

Swan shook his head. "You always have a choice, Isabella. It's only about to make the RIGHT choice."

"O-keee, then I made the right choice." She answered back with newly found strength in her voice. And then she added peeking through her lashes: "Don't you understand, Dad? I couldn't tell you."

"You can always tell me everything. I'm your father, Isabella. You ought to trust me."

"And you would have believed, if I told you the truth?" She raised her chin. "You would have thought I'm crazy…"

Charlie Swan was at odds with himself. He just couldn't admit that she was obviously right. He was a proud man, too. If he hadn't seen with his own eyes, he doubted that he would have been open-minded enough to believe her words.

Then one question conquered his mind and his head jerked up. "Did _they_ pledge you into secrecy?" Given to the look in her eyes, she knew at once of whom her father was speaking.

"No! Of course not! They are honourable people. They are good." Again she answered quite rebellious. Chief Swan huffed irritated.

"PEOPLE?" He sneered. "Come on, Bella! Vampires – no PEOPLE!"

Bella rolled her eyes and crossed her arms in front of her chest. She was tempted to stomp her feet but stopped it in the last moment. "You're so exactly sounding like Jake right now." She pouted.

Charlie Swan shook his head. "So at least this boy doesn't support your idiocy?"

Bella glared at her father and furiously yelled at him: "NO!"

"Good to know, because you've got a damn scaring non-existent sense of self preservation." Charlie yelled back.

"But they ARE GOOD!" Bella made her position clear – loudly.

All the fear that Charlie Swan had felt for himself and for her, suddenly burst out when seeing her that strong-willed. Hadn't he been face to face with a real and very much blood-lusty vampire? How could she say, vampires were harmless? Did she understand his concerns at all?

"GOOD?" He shouted, jumping from his chair. "Vampire's aren't GOOD!" The chair fell with a loud clatter and Charlie pounded his fist on the table. Bella winced. And he felt guilty.

"But THEY are. They don't kill people." Bella defended the Cullen's. For a moment she was absent – thinking about the good natured Carlisle Cullen and the motherly Esme - before she started to speak: "They are different. They are good. That's why I trusted them."

Yes, she trusted them. But could she still trust the one of them, she had loved so much? Bella almost couldn't hide the anger she felt for Edward Cullen for attacking Jacob without any reason.

"Isabella, think about it. They have to feed." Charlie talked into her. Maybe the Cullen's had influenced his daughter so much, that she couldn't make out right from wrong? He wished Billy and he would have talked to each other instead of fighting.

"I can't believe that I never realized." He said musing and more to myself. "Carlisle Cullen being the good doctor, working in a hospital…"

Strange pictures appeared in his head. Only to think of the possibilities and the power Cullen had had in the hospital!?! But then, there had never been any complaints. No, quite the contrary: People had trusted and adored him.

Swan mumbled: "They fooled us all." Now he looked up and gazed his daughter. Still, deep inside of him there was the nagging pain of betrayal: "You fooled us, too."

Bella winced, but otherwise took it calmly and without further ado. Did this mean Charlie was right - at least for a bit? What would he have done being in her situation? Even now that he knew about it, it felt strange to talk about it as if it was quite normal.

"The Cullen's don't kill people. They feed on animals." Bella explained and her combative spirit melted away. "That's why their eyes are golden. Vampires that drink human blood have red eyes."

Charlie Swan started pacing the kitchen, when she began to tell him everything she knew about vampires. Though she didn't tell him about how difficult it had been for Edward to resist her blood. And she also didn't tell him about Jasper attacking her over a paper-cut. Also she left out what happened with James and how close she had been to death then. But else she spilled the beans. Her father already knew so much by himself now. What sense would it make to still hide the facts from him? Charlie Swan listened quietly, but from time to time he asked for further details which she willingly gave. He had the feeling that Bella felt relief that she could finally share her secret with him.

Later on he asked her about Jacob Black and now Bella told him how she learned about Jacob being a wolf and that Jacob told her months ago about an old scary legend (which he himself didn't believe) and (after his first phasing) still only a little about the Quileute history.

The more Bella told her father the more he became angry at himself. He already knew about all this Quileute legends. He friggin' knew it all the time!!!

"I had it right before my eyes." Swan burst out. "I heard their stories more than once. But I didn't believe in those old tales." He ran his hands through his hair, cursing when he touched his head wound.

"Dammit, Bella. I have been so blind." He crashed on the couch, exhausted from the long night, the rough fight and all the emotional stress. He felt doomed. If only he had listened with an open mind and paid more attention to the Quileute stories, then he would have seen the signs and understood what was going on! And then maybe he wouldn't have mistrusted Jacob implying the boy would do illegal stuff?

Now that he got to understand why his daughter had kept everything a secret, the anger against her slowly faded away and rational thinking started to set in again.

"I'm feeling responsible for Chief Woods death." He told Bella. But Bella felt guilty too. If it only had been possible to tell him the truth from the very beginning, he would have been aware of the danger. Bella sat down next to her father and snuggled herself against him. They never before had felt so close to each other. Charlie Swan realized that he needed his daughter as much as she obviously needed him right now.

"I'm sorry, Dad. I really am." She murmured and Charlie Swan put his arm around her shoulder and pressed her to his chest.

"I will need to report Chief Wood's death. And I need to give some plausible explanations. I can't wait any longer, they will miss me at the station already…" He held in his breath. But what could he tell them about his colleagues' death?

"Will you tell me what happened to you, Dad?" Bella whispered. She needed to know what Victoria had done to her father and why this other police man was dead by now. Hoarsely Chief Swan began to report his daughter, how Woods had wanted him to come to Quinault and how they compared evidences at the dead victims that had been found in the woods. He told Bella that one of the missing hikers had survived and been found and talked about being kidnapped from the La Push Resort. Swan also explained how they had brought the strange man back to La Push and how Burkhardt threw himself out of the window after having seizures and acting pretty insane. Coming to the part, where Swan and Woods went after the man and finally had been attacked by the red-haired vampire and her consorts, Charlie's voice broke. The fury and desperation flamed up again and for Swan it was as if he would go through everything again. Though he couldn't tell how Chief Woods found his death, Charlie clearly remembered every single hit and punch Victoria had landed on him.

"I've never felt so useless in my life." Charlie Swan closed his report. "When she started to talk about you and threatened your life, I realized that I fought against a non-human creature. I wasn't strong enough to fight her off and it was only fear and desperation that kept me going." Bella stared at her dad with horror stricken eyes. She had been that close to death twice in her life – and both times threatened by a ravenous vampire - and she knew perfectly well, how her father was feeling.

Charlie Swan buried his face in his daughters hair exactly like he had done when she had been a baby and he inhaled her scent as if to make sure that she was sitting breathing and alive next to him.

"I would have willingly given my life, Bells, if I only could have saved yours with it." He hugged her so tightly, that they both hurt but neither one of them complained.

"I know, Dad. And I would have done the same for you." Now Bella was crying. Remembering so vividly the fear she had felt when she couldn't reach her father on the phone and knowing that Victoria was around had been unbearable. But now, after Charlie had told her everything and she knew how easily she could have lost him, she couldn't stop the crying although she loathed herself for being the cry-baby again.

As it is so often when talking important stuff to important people the ringing of the Charlie's cell phone interrupted their discussion. Wiping away her tears and checking on Charlie's features Bella Swan decided to answer the phone for him. Actually Charlie Swan almost was glad the phone was ringing because it gave him a moment to avoid humiliating himself in front of his daughter with another breakdown.

"Swan." She spoke into the phone. Her voice was shaky.

"Isabella, is that you? I thought you were with your mom?" It was Deputy Marks on the other end of the line. Bella's heart jumped and her mind started racing.

""Uhm, Deputy Marks… yeah, I just came home this morning…"

She needed to come up with some good explanations, so the Deputy wouldn't get suspicious. The problem was she just couldn't lie.

"Anyways. Listen, is Charlie with you?" Deputy Marks wanted to know.

Bella forced herself to stay as calm as possible under the given circumstances. She suddenly remembered an article she just recently read on a magazine about how to lie effectively. There comes rule No. 1: Stay as close to the truth as possible!

"Uhm… Unfortunately Charlie had some kind of collapse. He fell and got hurt." Bella heard herself lying like a pro.

"Shall I send you a doctor? How's Charlie right now?" Deputy Marks asked worried. Time for Rule No. 2: Combine your lie with the truth.

"The doctor has been here already. He's ok so far." Bella sniffed the previously shed tears away, but still her voice trembled.

"I thought something must have happened since Charlie's car is still parked at the Resort. I assume Chief Woods brought him home?"

Bella's brain got into top gear. What to say Marks? What did the damn article say about situations like that? Ah, yes: Play dumb or fake a memory loss.

"I don't know…" Bella answered.

"Can I talk to Charlie?" The Deputy asked and Bella shook her head spontaneously.

"Uhm… He's sleeping right now." The more the conversation went on, the easier lying seemed to be.

"Yeah, of course." The Deputy accepted. "One of us will drop by later and bring the car."

_Anything, _Bella thought, _as long as you don't demand to see Charlie?_

"Tell Charlie, we all are thinking of him and he needs to get well soon." Marks broke the connection and Bella put the cell phone aside.

"He believed everything so easily." Bella said to her father, trapping her hands between her knees. She had a strange feeling in her stomach.

Charlie nodded. "I should be scared about your lying skills." He said with a sad smile playing on his lips. Swan closed his eyes for a moment. Then he looked at his daughter again and said: "I don't know what the next hours will bring and when we will have some time for a serious talk again."

Bella watched her father's head getting red. That was the moment when she realized what kind of talk would be coming now. And she remembered that Jake had told her, that her father had heard…

Bella felt the blood rushing into her head.

"Okay, Dad." She squeaked feeling embarrassed already.

"Now," He deeply inhaled. "About you and Jacob Black…"

* * *

_BPOV_

_O God!_ I thought. _This conversation is not going to happen._ Shortly before making a complete fool out of me, I stopped myself from instinctively covering my ears.

"I know what you did upstairs." Charlie coughed and if it was possible to blush even deeper than I, he did.

_La la la la.__ I don't wanna he-ar._ I closed my eyes to hide my embarrassment.

"Look at me, Isabella Swan." Charlie ordered. I pressed my lips tightly together and peeked up to him from under my lashes. "If you're mature enough to have sex," Charlie said straight ahead. "You gotta be mature enough to look me in the eyes."

This was so mortifying. But on the other hand, I was tired of being told what I should do or rather not.

"We didn't do…" I huffed agitated, but Charlie interrupted me.

"Ah. Ah. I so not want to know what exactly you did upstairs." He almost barked out. He grabbed my shoulder and squeezed it lightly, shaking me a bit.

"_I'm adult. I can do what I want." I frowned._

I saw he was getting angry again. "As long as you're sticking your feet under my table…"

I interrupted him: "That slogan is slightly overused."

Charlie harrumphed: "But nevertheless true!" He glared at me. "Now, will you finally listen to what I have to say?" He raised his voice. I shook my head still needing to contradict.

"We didn't do…" I hissed stubbornly. "…anything of your concern."

That vein on his temple was throbbing angrily, whilst he tried to stay calm. I instantly felt sorry for my rebellious behaviour. But I couldn't do a thing against it. I wouldn't let my Jake be taken from me again.

Charlie sighed and padded my shoulder. "Let's make it short, Bells."

I instantly rolled my eyes. _I don't want to talk about my sex life with my Dad._

"Well, I wasn't very friendly with Jacob when he wanted to look after you earlier." I heard my father say. I noticed that it wasn't easy for him to admit this, but he bravely kept the eye-contact. "Maybe,… I… uhm, left him no other choice than to buck my order." He said thinking. "And then he did what he did…" He was blushing deeply. Was this still my father talking????

"But he didn't do a thing." I defended Jake stormily. Charlie's cocked an eyebrow which made me blurt out without thinking: "I screwed him. Put the blame on me."

My hand flew to my mouth, covering my lips. "I didn't say that." I whispered horrified. Charlie's face was an expression of shock.

"Let's pretend you didn't say that out loud." He cleared his throat and broke the glare for a second to wipe his eyes. Did he hide a smirk? No, that must be an optical illusion. Charlie was back to business, sooner that I wanted.

"We already talked about contraception and you're a smart girl. We can skip this part. I trust you on that."

_OMG. Please, someone kidnap me away from this place. _

"And it comes only natural that you're intimate with Jacob." Charlie coughed. If only he would allow me to lower my eyes, but he stayed fixed with me and I just had to stare at him like a petrified rabbit.

"Well, uhm… The point is. I request that you refrain from any sexual activities…" Charlie started off.

_HELL NO! WHY?_ I opened my mouth to yell my protest into his face, but he was already finishing his sentence. And what he said surprised me: _"…_when I'm around. I just can't stand the thought of being witness of my daughter's…" He made a face and let go of me. "Uhm… anyway. You know what I'm talking about." I nodded eagerly. _Please, let me go finally. I already got your point!_

"You wouldn't want me to have a woman here when you're around." Charlie eventually stated dryly, after he let me writhe for some time.

_NO!_ I mouthed horrified.

"See. We understand each other." He padded my shoulder again. "Okay, Isabella. End of talk. You're dismissed."

I jumped to my feet so fast that I tripped and almost fell over the small table in front of me. My face was still shaded in a fiery magenta red. There was no way that I would ever again have such a humiliating talk with my father. Let's say, this conversation had given me a pretty nasty shock.

I closed the door of my room behind me and leaned on the wooden frame. At once I had a flash back of Jacob pressing me to this door. I bit my lower lip as the meanwhile familiar, but splendid heat settled in my lower stomach. I promised to myself that would find a way to be close to Jake again, but I would make so damn sure that Charlie would never ever catch us in a 'situation'. There was no way that I would allow Charlie separating me from Jake. I deeply inhaled and heated up even more, when I noticed Jacobs scent still very prominently lingering in my room. I threw myself across my bed, ignoring the pain I inflicted myself when landing on my bruised body and indulged in the memories and bathed in the remnants of his warm, woodsy smell. If only dry-humping was this incredible, how overwhelming would real sex be with him??? I pressed my face into my pillow, kicked my feet on the bed excitedly and squeaked my giddy little heart out. I turned around and my chest ached protesting. Nevertheless I lay there, brushing over my ribs and grinned stupidly at the ceiling.

After a while my brain replayed the moment when I flung myself into his arms and how stunned he was. Our first kiss had been overwhelming and _GOD _had he grinded into me and _HEAVEN _had I rubbed my hips on him if there would be no tomorrow. The pure memory of it left me breathless. My skin covered in sweat and I fanned myself some air. Again and again I pictured Jake's beautiful face and his loving brown eyes. I stood up, weak in my knees, my chest throbbing and walked to my window, pushing it open. A gush of fresh air blew into my face and for a moment I closed my eyes as I breathed in the scent of the forest nearby. Not too long ago I had issues looking at those trees since they were reminding me of Edward leaving me there. But now I stared at the green mossy forest, safe in the knowledge that Jacob would be around there somewhere.

I furrowed my brow fretting about the fact, that Edward had so bold to attacked Jacob. Out of nowhere he had come, pushed Jake and sent him flying through the air. When I finally caught up with them, I'd been livid. Jake's fury about being attacked had matched my own. But nevertheless, I had been desperate to stop Jake from killing Edward. There had been that strange gut feeling that would let me know: it would have a devastating effect on me and Jacob if he succeeded in killing Edward. But my foremost thought wasn't about Edward (I still was damn angry with him, but not once in my life I wanted him to be dead and gone, okeeeeeeeeeeee???). It was about Jake and that I wanted to avert the act of killing. It left me without a choice. I simply had to react no matter the outcome. Of course, it had been reckless, stupid and downright dangerous stepping in between a fight with a wolf and a vampire. But when I regained consciousness and the shock faded away, there had been this feeling of satisfaction as if I had done something major with breaking an old - _well, kind of - cycle_. Though I couldn't make up what a cycle I could be thinking of, I had this strange feeling right now again and I still couldn't explain it. Confused I shook my head and bit my lower lip.

My heart was not only racing at full speed now, since I enrolled all the events of earlier, it was also aching and tugging in a strange way. Was it because I missed Jacob so much? I paced my room, playing with strands of my hair. I wanted to be back with Jacob. I hated that he was in La Push and I was stuck here. We just had us again, why do we have to be separated again. I sighed deeply.

I pressed my one hand over my heavily pounding heart and sliding down the wall into a sitting position, I twisted the other hand in the loose fabric of my skirt. My body tingled and I had butterflies in my stomach. I wanted Jake to look at me again in that somehow special way he had looked at me today, because there had been something in his eyes that had made me feel extraordinary. Jake had looked at me as if he would see me for the very first time and also as if I was the only existing and the most beautiful woman in the world.

When would Jake call me or come to pick me up? I glanced at my watch. I realised that I had spend hours on my bed, thinking and daydreaming. Regardless it was only late morning and Jake would probably still be involved in wolf pack stuff. Gosh, I missed Jake more than I had missed him in Jacksonville. Was this possible? I sighed again and then pulled me up and went into the bathroom for a shower. Somehow I had to kill the time, else I would go mad. Stepping in front of the bathroom mirror I stared into my face. The sleep deprivation was causing an unhealthy grey colour on my already pale skin and around my bloodshot eyes were big dark circles. Man, I really needed some sleep, before the wolves mistook me for a vampire. I giggled. Well, Jake could go wolf on me anytime. I wouldn't mind. I giggled again. I pulled my shirt up. I gasped when I saw all those purple and dark blue marks on my belly, my ribs and my back. But also I admired the tattoo which was healing very fast and I was damn proud of it. I waited for the moment that I could finally show it to Jacob. When Dr. Liz had examined my bruises she put an ointment on the tattoo, since I hadn't taken care of it since being in the airplane. And she found the tattoo 'darn cool' (her very own words).

I stepped under the shower and enjoyed the feeling of the hot water flowing over my body. It was relaxing and inspiring at once. I adjusted the heat to the point of matching Jake's body temperature. The feeling of missing him so terribly became worse and overwhelming. I would drive over to La Push if he hadn't called me until early afternoon.

I stepped out of the shower after a way too short time. Though I would have loved to extend showering, but the tattoo mustn't get soaked.

I towel dried myself being hyper carefully with my chest and belly region and than took care of the tattoo. I padded it dry with a fresh small towel and then thoroughly worked in a moisturizing lotion. The colours were so wonderfully rich and brilliant and the texture amazing. The lines and fillings were slightly higher than the rest of my skin, but still very silky. I tenderly stroked over the picture with my fingertips and sighed quietly. Jake just had to like it.

I slipped into a pair of my comfortable grey sweatpants and a cotton shirt and with a last flash on my reflection in the mirror I wanted to go back to my room, when I suddenly remembered the short convo between Jake and Sam, when Jake had carried me inside the house while Sam's gaze was following us. If my memory doesn't fail me, Sam had barked something like: "She isn't even native!"

And Charlie angry answer has been: "Who said that she isn't?"

Really, I needed to ask Charlie about it. He had to tell me. It would be pretty cool to share an ethnic background with Jake. I was thrilled and stormed out of the bathroom and down the stairs.

"Dad? I need to know…" I stopped in front of the couch. Charlie was sleeping soundly, face squeezed into one of the pillows, one foot solidly contacting the ground, the other foot propped up at the armrest. It didn't look comfortable at all, rather it seemed as if he ready to jump to his feet at any time. I pulled a blanket over him, actually expecting that he would wake up from being touched, but he was out cold. In a way I was disappointed, since I wanted, no I needed answers now. But mind over matter, he needed to sleep the shock off and there was enough trouble waiting for him, once people started to ask about that dead Police Officer.

I walked up to my room again. I could still ask Renee and I searched for my cell phone to call her. But then I decided I rather waited for Charlie to tell me. Nevertheless I texted her that I was safely returned home and everything was safe and sound.

I realised just now how sleepy I was. I lay down on my bed and tried to relax my sore body. I needed to sleep badly. A little sleep wouldn't hurt. Jake would be busy anyway. I didn't expect him calling me before afternoon. I curled around my pillow that still smelled of Jake and drifted off to sleep within minutes.


	24. Chapter 21

_**Getting along with Charlie**_

**A/N: Thank you for waiting so patiently for me to update. Life has been kind of busy lately and I'm sorry to let you know, that it won't be any quieter within the next two months. **

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_**BPOV**_

I had slept for about two hours and went down to meet Charlie in the kitchen. His face looked even more terrible than it had looked two hours ago and given to the way he moved, his body must be hurting like hell. Charlie had always been good in observation. It was his job and I have always been his favourite object of study, since I regularly came home with a new injury. And so he 'observed' me as I cautiously walked down the stairs.

"What happened to you anyway? You move as if run over by a truck."

_. S n__ot funny!_ I grimaced. Not only were all the muscles of my upper body stiff and aching, but also were my thighs, calves and knees. Running up the hill like a maniac, then another run, trying to keep up with two fighting super-beings and in the end colliding with a gigantic wolf wouldn't do any good on any humans body, especially not on my untrained clumsy human body.

"Jacob bumped into me." I answered downplaying the situation. Charlie mustn't worry even more than he probably already did.

"Jacob. Into. You? What happened exactly?" He narrowed his eyes.

"I… I tried to stop… Jake from… uhm, … tearing Edward apart." I stuttered.

"Are you insane?" Charlie choked out. "You intervened in their fight?" He shook his head disbelievingly. "I can't believe that you have such a lack of self-preservation…"

I stared to the ground, not knowing what to answer.

„Has Jake called yet?" I finally asked after some time of uncomfortable silence.

"Billy has called." Charlie answered, still staring at me over the rim of his tea cup. "He told me to tell you, that the meeting is over and Jake waits for you to come as soon as you can."

"Good." Relieved to escape Charlie's constant glaring I grabbed an apple from the counter and headed for the door.

"Do you want to go outside like this???" Charlie questioned. I pushed my naked foot into one of my worn sneakers, while pulling my jacket from the peg.

"Yeah, why you're asking?" I wondered looking down on me. I still wore my grey sweats and the plain shirt. I knew Jake wouldn't mind. He wasn't the kind of guy who paid much attention to what a girl was wearing.

"You're nuts, Bells." My dad mumbled and shook his head. I took a second look on myself feeling self-conscious. He probably was right. I should change into denims and a nicer shirt, since the one I was wearing was slightly see-through and apart from that I remembered I wasn't even wearing a bra. I blushed and pulled the jacket around me.

"I'm going upstairs changing my clothes…" I walked back to the stairs.

"Before you go, you really could spend a few minutes with your old man, you know?" Charlie huffed.

"I'm sorry, Dad." I turned around to look at him. I tried to explain: "It's just… I'm missing Jake already and I want to be with him."

Charlie tilted his head. "You're all head over heels." He stated.

I nodded. But it didn't feel like simply 'head over heels', it felt much more, deeper, more intensive and captivating.

"I love him."

"Well, still you should spare some moments of your time and listen to me. Billy got a message from Dr. Cullen."

I shuddered and went back into the kitchen sitting down next to Charlie. "What did it say?"

"The Cullen's took care of…" Charlie swallowed hard. "… Chief Woods corpse." My father looked miserable. His face was white as a sheet.

"Billy said, they brought the car half way down to Quinault, put the corpse in and pushed the car down a steep hillside. They didn't expect the car to catch fire but it did and …"

I gasped and my mouth fell open.

Charlie continued talking almost inaudible: "They said I shall not bother about the scenario they put up to cover the circumstances of his death."

"But you're the last one that has seen Chief Woods. Of course you'll be interviewed" I panicked.

"And I really don't look as if I just fell down…" Charlie buried his face in his hands. "Man, my boys are not dumb. They can tell self inflicted injuries from third-party involvement."

"Damn." I muttered. How could Charlie be safe from further investigation? I mean, I was sorry for Chief Woods death. I really was. Nobody should die the way he did. But I didn't know him in person and it wasn't like Charlie had killed him. Woods had been killed by a vampire. But this again Charlie couldn't tell anyone. And then there were his injuries. To someone who didn't know the whole story he would look queer.

Charlie was like frozen. I put my arms around his shoulders reassuringly.

"I've got an idea." I mumbled when my eyes fell upon a paper with emergency call numbers that stuck on our fridge. I dialled the hospital and asked for Dr. Mauna. Soon I had her on the phone.

"Doc? Bella Swan here. You've been at our house this morning."

"I remember. What's up, Bella? Is your father alright?"

"Yeah. Well. No. I mean yes." I was stuttering first, but then with more confidence I said: "Uhm. Can I ask you for something? Are you alone?" I heard a shuffling and the clicking of a door being closed.

"Now I'm alone."

I could just hope that Dr. Mauna really was the open-minded person I believed her to be. I just hoped she wouldn't betray the trust I put in her. I didn't know who much she had seen this morning, but obviously it had been enough to kind of know about Jake and the Cullens.

In a few words I told her about the message Billy got from the Cullen's. Dr. Mauna listened quietly and then said: "If you want me to fake an alibi for your father, I have to disappoint you. I won't lie."

I groaned and all hope left me. But surprisingly she offered then: "Your father may not be exposed to any kind of anxiety. His condition is still unstable." I was confused. Why was she telling me this? Was there something I better should know? I quickly looked at my father, feeling all the more concerned about him.

"Why are you telling me this…?" I whispered into the speaker.

"Oh, I was just wondering out loud…" Dr. Mauna was quiet for a moment. "Yes. I have a plan. It should keep your father from getting interviewed about Chief Woods for about some days."

Before I could thank her, she hung up without further ado.

Charlie stared at me as if I had grown a second head. I started to pace the kitchen. I noticed, when I constantly was moving, the pain in my muscles subsided a bit.

"Bells,… you surprise me. For being the daughter of the Chief of Police you're a way too perfect liar and plotter. That really put to shame a professional. I don't know if I should be scared or proud…" He stood up, which took him quiet some effort and slowly walked towards the stairs. He was exhausted and looked aged.

"I only want to have you safe. You're not responsible for what has happened."

"What did the Doc say?" Charlie wanted to know.

"She's coming up with a plan that makes sure you don't get asked about Chief Woods for a couple of days…" I told him and wondered how she would make it possible.

"That would give you time to heal. I mean, with your scratches and bruises…" I explained. Charlie shrugged his shoulders in a 'it's all over anyway'-manner.

"Dad. It will be alright, somehow…" I tried to comfort him. He just raised his hands and mumbled: "Sure, sure."

I was surprised hearing Jake's phrase from his mouth. But it was in no way the carefree, hopeful and sunny 'sure, sure' Jake used to utter. It sounded absolutely tired and hopeless.

"You hungry, Dad?" I asked. I felt the need to do something to take care of Charlie. But as much as I wanted to stay with him, I also felt vigorously drawn to Jacob, longing to see him. Cooking would maybe distract me from too much thinking.

"No. Not hungry at all."

I frowned, but didn't argue. "I'm going to give Jake a call, telling him that I won't come over."

"No way!" Charlie refused bluntly. "Go to him already. You're making me crazy with that pacing. I'm a grown man, you know? I can be alone for some hours." Charlie managed a grin. "I need some sleep anyway. There's no need for you to baby sit me." He laughed, but the smile didn't reach his eyes.

"I'd rather stay." I objected but Charlie cut me short.

"You go. I sleep. End of story." He took me by my shoulders and shoved me towards the stairs. "Find yourself some nice clothes to put on and just go. It's alright with me."

I just stared at Charlie in disbelief. What had happened? Charlie smirked amused: "I'm not blind or ignorant, Bells. I how much you want to be with Jake right now. I couldn't enjoy your company without feeling like crap." He tousled my hair and gave me an encouraging smile.

I gave in then all too willingly. He was right, but still I felt torn. Wouldn't it be better, if I stayed home with him? Just in case?

"I could ask Jake to come over. You wouldn't be alone then…" I suggested, but Charlie shook his head.

"This is absolutely out of the question, Bella." Charlie turned my offer down. Instantly I felt offended. I thought everything was clear between Jake and Charlie.

"I really do like Jacob. He's like a son to me, Bella. But I still recover from earlier." He blushed slightly, but enough for me to notice. Then he slowly dragged his feet up to his room and closed the door behind him.

"Uh, okay." I talked to myself but feeling at ease with Charlie's statement. Still it was only him getting used to me having a boyfriend.

I went in my room and for the next couple of minutes I was busily rummaging my closet. I had recognized that Jake liked the skirt I had been wearing today. But it was covered with dirt and totally rumbled. _Well than, no skirt._

Instead I put on my new chocolate brown roll-up cargo pants, a bra and a red zipper shirt.

Then I pulled the tie out of my hair and combed it until it was straight again and shiny. I chuckled when I looked at myself. Out from the mirror there wasn't that shy, mousy girl looking back at me but a pretty good looking young woman.

I took my cell phone from the nightstand and shoved it in the back pocket of my pants. Then I slipped into my black wool jacket and suddenly decided to go one better and to put on the red shoes I wore at the graduation and which Jake liked that much. I giggled again. I obviously was becoming vain. I pulled my shoes out from the bottom of my closet when I saw a wrapped angular object that was hidden in the farthest corner of my closet.

"Time to call you back into being..." I mumbled and stuffed the box into my back pack.

Then I went over to my father's room and knocked at his door.

"I'm off then, Dad. Call me when you need me."

Charlie opened his door eying me warily. "Be careful and keep out of mischief, Bells."

I wagged an eyebrow. "I'll be as good as gold."

Charlie groaned. "Why don't I believe you?"

"Love you, Dad." I pecked a kiss on his cheek. "I'll be back before sundown."

~*~

_**JPOV**_

I and Dad walked in a fast pace towards La Push. After a short while my father started to run and it was amazing. He held the tempo until we reached La Push. Due to the fact that Dad hadn't run in years I was astonished how fast his strength had recovered. During running we told him about the fight with Victoria and how we had found Charlie in the woods, chased and beaten by her and how much he had fought her back. Again I shivered at the pure thought of how close Charlie had been to death. If we hadn't been in time we might have lost him to this ravenous vampire female. Again I was stunned by his courage and strength to fight her though to him it must have been a throe.

"It leaves open some questions though." I ended my report. "We gotta find out who is the white wolf that helped us out and we need to know what happened to the guy that Charlie was after. I'm afraid that we will rather find him dead than alive. Apart from that we have to take care of the other chief." How would it be possible to explain his death to the authority leaving out Charlie Swan's involvement?

Entering La Push Dad walked home while I met with the pack first. We gathered at Sam's and I repeated my report about the battle. Later on I discussed the strategy with the guys, considering what we could improve if there would be a next time. But mainly we met to be together, healthy and alive, and to get some of Emily's delicious food into our stomachs. All of us were here, even the youngest members of our pack. Collin and Brady were too shy to speak up. They were 13 years old and for my liking way too young to carry the burden of phasing already. But there was only so much I could do about that. Leah had refused to join our gathering. I didn't wonder about it and I wasn't even angry since I was sure she wanted to avoid Sam. She had felt so much better with him being at the Quinault Reservation. I hadn't seen Leah since she had disappeared into the woods, after I had ordered her to stop attacking the Cullen's. Maybe she was annoyed because of that.

We kept the meeting short and simple. The night had been long and all of us were exhausted and tired. When I came closer to my home, Dad was sitting on the porch, obviously waiting for me. He seemed a little dishevelled and the door was wide open. My weariness was gone in an instant.

"What's up?" I called from across the street, but then I saw a paper stuck on our door. I crossed the street and grabbed for the piece of paper which was dramatically nailed onto the wall. I recognized the perfect handwriting and only read the signature (The Cullens) when I smelled the familiar, but disgusting stench. There had been bloodsuckers on our land? Before I could freak out that one of them had the guts to enter the reservation, Dad pulled me inside reading the text to me out loud. The message didn't reach me, since inside the house it even was worse: The kitchen was reeking of vampire. I started shaking violently when I noticed, that whoever had written the message had been so bold to take a paper from OUR counter and use one of OUR pens. Dad almost shouted the content of the letter into my ear so I would even recognise him over my fury. Only know I listened: The Cullens had arranged it so that it looked like an accident, with tossing the Chief's car with his corpse inside down a steep hillside. The car had caught fire and it was only steel and ashes now.

It made me sick to the bones, that our archenemies were helping us out on that part.

"Calm down, Jacob." Dad said to me, following me into my room. I was shaking so heavily now that I was close to phasing.

"This is my home." I yelled at him, wondering how he could stay that calm. After all he lived here as well and with his newly activated wolf gene he must smell their stench. "Why doesn't it bother you? They are not allowed to cross the line! I even banned them from the entire area." My blood was up.

Dad shouted back: "It does bother me. But they had to inform us quickly and decided to not meet us face to face. There's reason behind this letter not a provocation. Calm down."

I stomped into the bathroom and put my head under icy water. My broken arm was pounding and hurting and I was still so mad. Dad wouldn't leave the room but talked into me trying to bring me back to my senses.

Eventually he sighed and went to his room to come back with his sacred pipe. He lit it up and opened each and every window of our house to get the stench out. Soon the soothing smell of herbs filled the rooms and made the stench less painful.

"I could have thought about this earlier." He rumbled and walked into the kitchen. He prepared sandwiches and ordered me to sit down.

"Eat." Dad placed the plate in front of me.

I grabbed one of the sandwiches still fuming over the Cullen's boldness. Did they think of us too dumb to find our own way to deal with the corpse without endangering Charlie to disposal? I tried to only see the benefits for Charlie. If nobody was to blame him, then he would be okay, which meant Bella would be okay, too. I huffed and munched away a second sandwich.

"I'm proud of you, Jacob. You did great today." Dad suddenly said and I almost choked on my sandwich. I looked up and in his eyes I saw so much pride and love it was almost overwhelming. I put the sandwich down on the plate and glanced to the ground counting knotholes in our floor planks.

"I couldn't have succeeded without the pack." My voice had a rough and husky edge. Fidgeting around I shoved my good hand into the pocket of my pants, where it made contact with _…damn it,_ Bella's top. It was still there. My face turned beet red and I really couldn't stop the foolish grin that spread over my face.

Dad narrowed his eyes and deeply inhaled.

_Damn it!_ Of course, he would smell.

He checked me up from head to toe and then his face twisted into a smile that was more of a grimace and he suddenly looked very mischievous.

"I had a hard time keeping Charlie from entering Bella's room and rip your balls off. He was more than pissed at you." He snarled at me with his pipe between his lips. I grabbed the tabletop, sitting rigidly in my chair and watched Dad pace the room. He. had. snarled. at. me?

The way he looked and behaved right now, I considered, would made him a fierce wolf - would he ever be able to phase. A wolf you wouldn't want to mess up with. The mere thought of that made my hackles rise. My lips curled up and I almost bared my teeth. I low and warning growl rumbled in my chest. _!"$%&§!?_ What was going on here?

Dad hunched his shoulders and bent forward. Suddenly he was in my face and hissed: "I don't bother you having sex with Bella, but Charlie does. A lot!"

I glared at him. The wolf in me wanting to snap at him, determined to teach him who really was in charge. Wolf-me was seething but _shame on Human-_me: it didn't see Dad's hand coming. The smack he gave me on my head was a bit of all right. I jumped up to my feet, totally enraged and feeling offended.

"You won't fight your old man, will you?" Dad raised his hands defensively. As abruptly as come his mood switched back to normal. He smiled at me apologizing and said allaying: "Next time you keep your Bella quiet or make sure that Charlie isn't around."

He completely ignored my aggressiveness, which gave me time to cool down. I relaxed and finally chuckled under my breath.

"It's no fun holding your friend back from kicking your son's butt." Dad rumbled.

"I see your point." Leaning back on my chair I impishly grinned: "Once you could ram him in the ankles and run over him with your wheel chair. Nowadays you have to fight in one-on-one combat while standing on your feet. May the better man win!"

But almost fiercely I added: "But seriously, Dad. Charlie won't keep me away from Bells. He doesn't even need to try. He would only loose against ME, so… "

Dad narrowed his eyes and glanced at me the way he did, when I had been around Bella earlier today.

"You might have already recognized that I imprinted on Bella."

I said stiffly and just as a matter of fact.

"I'm happy for you," Dad stated simply and I know he honestly was happy. "Watching your reaction on Sam's foolish remark" He paused briefly to gauge my reaction. When I stayed quiet he continued: "made me think that you could have imprinted."

"It doesn't change anything I feel about her." I said as calm as I could, but again I was much more hostile than I intended. I needed some privacy, air to breath, time to think. I hadn't had any time for myself since that second transition.

"Why don't you walk down to First Beach? I will call at Charlie's and tell Bella to come over." Dad suggested. He could read me so well. I hated being not myself and that's why agreed and left the house slamming the door shut behind me. I was being rude, but I couldn't help myself.

I speeded to the beach, running energy off, deliberately ignoring my aching arm, and made me comfortable at the big white driftwood tree. It was Bella's and my favourite spot at First Beach. I knew she would be there soon. I sat down, huddled deep down behind the branches, so no one could see me – except he or she would walk around the driftwood tree. It was a perfect place to think and to consider the events. I listened to the whooshing of the waves and the mewing of the seagulls.

Now that I had a safe distance to my father I understood that his manners had triggered the wolf in me. And that it had something to do with both of us being so strong-willed. My reaction unmistakably was the response of a dominant male wanting to prove his dominance over another male. And Dad had Alpha-blood in him, too.

I started doodling circles in the sand, while I was thinking. I'd never been so much interested in behavioural biology but from what I remembered, two Alpha males in a small territory weren't common. Maybe that was the reason I overreacted? Maybe there was more to that "you being the true Alpha"-talking after all?

I was pulled out of my musing by the dim feeling of not being alone anymore. I craned my neck to watch and listen observantly. But there were no unfamiliar sounds, the beach was deserted. Still there were the seagulls mewing and the ocean whooshing. Farther away I heard the mumbling of people in their homes and the cars speeding on the highway.

Strangely enough I suddenly knew that Bella must have entered La Push. I couldn't hear her truck, but I could sense her presence in my territory. I closed my eyes and remained completely still behind the driftwood tree. As the minutes ticked by I stood up and checked the beach behind me and the road as far as I could see. What took her so long?

But then the feeling that she was near me increased. Now I heard a car approaching, but it wasn't her truck. It was my rabbit that stopped at the roadside. I heard the car door slam shut and then I heard her footsteps.

~*~

_**BPOV**_

I was in the middle between Forks and La Push when my cell phone rang. It was my father's ring tone. Why was he calling already? I pulled over and stopped my truck.

"Dad? Are you okay?"

My father's voice was smooth and even. "I'm fine, Bells. Don't worry about me. I only had this idea…"

He held his breath for a second and let it go a little later. "I just wondered if Jacob and the pack wants have dinner with us."

"Dinner? With the pack?" I asked dumbfounded.

"Yeah. A little thank-you, you know? I thought it would be appropriate. Maybe on the following weekend, Saturday? So what do you think?"

I couldn't agree more! I was more than enthusiastic and almost screamed into the phone: "This is a great idea, Dad. Jake will love it." In my head I already thought about different recipes and calculated the amount of food I would need. "But feeding these hungry guys will be a bit of a problem." I grinned. When it came to cooking I was sure, nobody could beat me that easily. And it would be quite a challenge to manage dinner for a big bunch of ever so hungry teenage werewolves.

"I trust you. If someone can manage to cook for a company, then it's you, Bells." He hung up and I squealed with excitement and happiness. Good thing that the windows of my truck were closed.

I knew Charlie well, and if he invited Jake AND all of the pack members in, then he agreed to me being around them, which also meant that he agreed to Jake being my boyfriend.

I pushed the truck into gear and it lazily rolled back on the street. It even backfired twice. Jake really needed to check this old baby. Soon I reached La Push and stopped in front of Jake's garage. With a loud pop my car went dead.

"Just great!" I huffed and climbed out of my truck. At least this rusty piece of scrap metal had made it to Jake's garage.

I walked over to the house expecting Jake to welcome me, since he must have heard this crazy thunder machine for miles. But it was Billy that opened the door.

"Hi Bells, Jake's waiting for you at First Beach."

I was like in shock seeing Billy standing upright in the door healthy as a horse. Only now I really recognised the changes. Gone seemed the pain that had forced him into the wheel chair. Never in my life had I seen him that healthy and majestic, not even when I was a kid and had been a whole lot smaller. I must have been gawking at him like a fool since Billy started laughing.

"What happened to you?" I managed asking, when I finally got my brain back working.

Billy grinned and said: "The trigger is as simple as silly. I had a fight with Jacob."

I did the math. One: When Jake got mad he had problems to keep his shape. Two: If he lost it he would phase into his wolf form. Altogether that would mean Billy must have had a hard time with Jake and thrown a tantrum. And since he was a bearer of the wolf gene, his fury must have triggered the gene.

"Are you phasing now too?" I wanted to know. But Billy shook his head.

"No, and I won't even try. I leave that to the young folks." He said and then changed the subject. "Your car broke down?"

"I guess so." I frowned. If I had to walk to First Beach I wouldn't be with Jacob for another twenty minutes.

"Drive Jacob's car. I know he won't mind." Billy suggested and opened the door to Jake's rabbit that was standing next to the house. I didn't hesitate and plopped down on the driver's seat. The car key already stuck in the ignition and I noticed once more, that nobody ever locked anything here in La Push. Be it car or be it home. Oddly enough I nevertheless felt strangely safe here.

I adjusted the seat so I was able to reach the pedals and after a few times of wrecking the car I finally got it started and drove to First Beach. I pulled into one of the parking spots and got off the car. I already saw Jake standing close to the water. He stared into the sky, deeply lost in thoughts. Even from that far away he looked beautiful. My heartbeat accelerated the closer I got. For the first time since we had met again, I could take his whole form in. The changes to his body were significant. His shoulders were so broad that the waist in contrast seemed small. And his legs looked longer than I was in general. The muscle strands were long, well defined and bulked up. But he didn't look bulky though. There was a predatory grace in each of his movements that made my heart flutter. The clouds opened and the sun peeked through. The shine formed a halo around his head and made his skin glow. I slipped out of my shoes and took them in one hand. Slowly I walked towards him. He turned around and watched me approaching.

My heart was in my throat. I wondered what had made me hesitate so long. I had the most caring and loving man right before my eyes and I had preferred to pine away over my Ex? How silly could a girl be? I swore myself that now I would grab my luck with both of my hands and hold it tightly. I had told this myself before, but things had changed. There was no turning back for me anymore. I knew that I loved Jacob Black from the bottom of my heart and as long as he was meant to be with me I would live it to the fullest. I wasn't able to foresee how long we could be together until he finally would imprint on someone, IF he ever would imprint. Jake had told me, that imprinting was rare and already two of his pack had imprinted on someone already. But the time that I would be given I would use wisely. Life was too short to let it waste. I was willing to deal with everything that would come upon us – as long as we would be together.

I stopped in front of him and he gingerly placed the hand of his good arm at my cheek. I snuggled into his hand and welcomed the warmth he emitted.

"Bells," He said with his husky voice. "There you are."

"Here I am." I answered simply and looked up at him through my lashes. "Billy told me where to find you."

"Come sit down with me." Jake said and pulled me down behind the driftwood tree. He made sure, that he handled me with care remembering my bruises. He pulled me into his lap and as I cuddle into his chest I'm careful to not touch his broken arm that is fixed in the brace. In some way the brace made him look even sexier. Am I kinky now or what?

Jake stared at me with a burning, sincere intensity. He wrapped his good arm around me and tapped his fingers nervously against his thigh and I could feel the muscles in his arm twitching. Eventually he took a deep breath.

"Bells, I've always loved you. You know that, right?" He said breaking the silence and gazed at me, his dark brown eyes concentrating hard. My heart bumped against my chest. I was nervous. He was different. Seriousness and gravity lingering in his eyes.

My voice hitched up several octaves. "Yes." I squeaked. My voice was treacherous. It was giving away that I was scared. What could he possibly want to tell me and being so serious about that? When he had left me this morning everything had been so decided.

"Bells, and nothing will ever change my feelings for you. Do you believe me?" He tilted his head and leaned it against my forehead.

"Yes." I whispered into him, my voice still too high. I put my hand over his heart and somehow I managed to add feverish: "And I love you, Jake. You never have to doubt that anymore. You know that, too! Do you?"

He caught my hand with the hand of his bad arm, covering it, before he gently pulled me closer to him, trapping my hand between our chests.

"Bells." He softly kissed my lips and murmured: "I've got to tell you something." His breath caressed my face and then he captured my lips almost frantically. Despite that his kiss made me dizzy, I felt naked fear surging through my body. What made him so …anxious?

My brain operated at full stretch, within split seconds coming up with different scenarios of what he could possibly tell me. On the one hand my old insecurity dominated my thinking. I was afraid of being rejected, of being not good enough for him. But on the other hand I despised my weak self and I straightened breaking the kiss.

"Just tell me already." I said impatiently and squirmed out of his embrace. I slid down into the sand, fidgeting with my fingers and searched his face for an answer. I found nervousness that shouldn't be there. He never suffered from nerves. Ever. Maybe Sam had ordered him around again? Telling Jake, that he wasn't allowed to be with me? After his moronic comment from this morning I was convinced Sam was capable of doing so. I gritted my teeth.

"If you're going to tell me that you can't be with me anymore…" I reached out and grasped his good arm, squeezing it tightly. Glaring at him I hissed through my teeth: "Believe me, I will fight for you."

And fight I would. Should the occasion arise, I would even go to Sam and tell him where to go! If Sam meant his Alpha status allowed him to order his pack around he clearly was barking up the wrong tree. Literally. I smiled inwardly. But despite of my pugnacious thoughts, I felt how my breathing became laboured and I really got scared.

Jake shook his head. "Bella… " He answered… but hesitantly. My belly clenched even more. I felt self-conscious. He should be smiling and radiating with boyish mischief. That's how I knew Jake. What was wrong? Why was he so quiet and pensive? Had I done something wrong?

Maybe he had decided he wasn't ready for going steady with a girl? Maybe he didn't want - I swallowed hard – you know – the real thing with me after all? How could I know? I racked my brain to find the solution of what was bothering him.

"If it's because I… ah… I … uhm… assaulted you earlier…" I stuttered blushing. "I'm really sorry. I will wait, if you're not ready yet."

Okay. Now he laughed. Out loud. Bending his head back and everything. But when his laughter ebbed away, he stared at me and again the smile didn't reach his eyes. "Come on, Bells. You're being ridiculous."

His gaze intensified even more and I felt how his body heat increased. "What makes you think that? I loved it. I wanted it as much as you wanted it. Bells,…" His warm breath blew over my face. "I've been waiting for this for so long. If you had let me, we would have done it long time ago. I won't stand in the way." He grinned his huge white-toothed smile at me, his dark eyes twinkling and but nevertheless I was facing the new Jake. Sincere. Intense. _Breathtaking._ I was relieved but still I didn't understand. Why was he so serious?

He bent forward to close the distance between us. His eyes were warm and displayed love and smouldering passion. My breath hitched. His hand snaked around my waist again and he pulled me back into his lap without any effort. He moved his hand over the small of my back and my skin started to hum with anticipation. But still he hadn't told me what he actually wanted to tell me and before he even had the chance to say a word I blurted out once again:

"If it is because of Charlie…then…" I did not even bother to take a new breath before I hastily continued. "He's good. He will come around. He already invited you…"

"Will you be quiet and listen to me already." Jake snapped rather frustrated. He slipped his broken arm out of the sling that held it in its place and cupped my cheek. Wouldn't it hurt him or threaten the healing?

"Jake." I objected but he placed a finger over my lips and mouthed a 'shut up'. I sighed deeply and gave up thinking. Really, more jabbering wouldn't take me anywhere closer to what he needs to tell me.

"Bells," His brown eyes locked with mine and my heart sped up a beat, or two.

"I have imprinted. On you. That's what I wanted to tell you."

My stomach clenched at his words and I pushed back so I could look at him. Totally confused I rushed out: "When? How long? I mean…"

Jake tensed and clenched his hand to a fist. "This morning. When I picked you up from the bus. I smelled you and saw you,… it, it just happened."

"How is this even possible? I thought imprinting happens at first sight." I burst out astonished but hopeful. It would be too good to be true. My nails dug into my palms and then… _Oh,no!_ A lump formed in my throat and I felt tears welling up in my eyes. I didn't want to be that kind of emotional, but I couldn't stop it. I stared to the ground to hide those silly tears.

"Bells?" He asked absolutely taken aback as a sob escaped my lips. I waved my hand, communicating him to give me a minute to recover.

"I don't know either. It just happened." He explained, ignoring my silent plea. He cupped my chin and raised my head, forcing my eyes to meet his. Jake looked concerned, confused… almost scowling at me? His jaw was tense and set in a hard line.

"Bells?" His thumb stroked over my bottom lip and brushed away a tear that rolled down my cheek. I opened my mouth and closed it again. I needed to tell him that I was happy, but his revelation rendered my speechless: My vocal cords decided to go on strike.

"Bells, it doesn't change a thing for me. Believe me. I still love you. Not more. Not less." He assured resolutely but the hurt look in his eyes increased as he saw me trembling. I needed to tell him. He would feel rejected. Still my throat gave nothing away but hot air. He gritted his teeth and pressed his mouth to a hard line.

"But of course you have a choice. You don't need to be with me, if you, … if you…" He said through his teeth. His body that had moulded so perfectly with mine went rigid, his hard muscles almost causing me discomfort. He was shutting down. _Oh no! Don't Jake._

"Jake…" I whispered and smiled through my tears. The hand that held my chin grasped me even tighter.

Finally the cheer I felt inside broke through the surface and I croaked out: "Oh, shut up, silly."

I threw my arms around him in a tight embrace, sobbing and laughing at the same time. "I told you that I love you. I already made my choice. I want only you."

He relaxed at once. "But why are you crying then?" He demanded to know apprehensively.

"It's just happy tears. I always thought I would loose you, because you would imprint on another in the end. And now you imprinted on me. I can't believe it." I laughed and cried at the same time. Then terribly ashamed I noticed that my tears and snot stained his chest. I struggled to free me from his embrace and to clean my face and him, but Jake held me regardless.

"Oh God, Bells, you scared the shit out of me." Jake mumbled, pressed me to his chest and buried his face in my hair.

"Can't. breath. Jake." I gasped out and he softened his embrace.

"Next time you gonna tell me straight ahead. No beating around the bushel." I said shaken by dry sobs.

"You were the one that needed to spill her guts out, Bells. I would have told you way earlier if you hadn't interrupted me over and over again." I felt him smiling against my hair and a shiver ran down my spin.

"It's so me, making a drama out of it." I muttered. "Meanwhile I'm so happy I could do the happy dance."

Jake pulled away and studied my face. I looked at him, seeing only a blurry vision of him through my watery eyes. I blinked the tears away.

"I will work, I mean, I'll try to be worthy of your love." I promised, thinking of how he would need a strong woman, physical and emotional. If one goes out to kill vampires he wouldn't need to be worried of mental breakdowns of his girlfriend.

"Bells." He asked bewildered. "To be worthy of my love? What do you mean?" He shook his head and frowned. I shrugged my shoulders at a loss of coherent thoughts again.

"You clearly don't know yourself, babe." He rubbed my arms and shoved his good hand into the pockets of his pants searching for something. He paused for a moment, shook his head again, smiled a private-joke smile and finally managed a tissue out of the other pocket.

"Here." He handed me the tissue and I wanted to clean his chest. Jake stopped me. "Wait."

He put me on my feet, stood up and walked towards the ocean. It was something I liked about Jacob, too. He was just completely natural and uncomplicated. Jake bent down to the water and just washed everything off, while I cleaned my face and wiped my nose.

"I'm such a panic chick. Sorry." I apologized with a lopsided smile. I'll change that. I promise."

"You don't need to change anything. Just stay the same." Jake turned around and his pants hung dangerously low on his hips. What a sight! I bit my lip while I wondered whose clothes he wore now, after he had ripped his stuff this morning. Studying him I doubted that one of his old clothes would still fit him.

Jake wickedly grinned at me when he caught me gawking at him and put his bad arm back into the sling. He walked back to me and sat down wrapping his good arm around me and kissing the top of my head, he said: "Well, a little less anxiety would be nice, though…"

"You're so mean, Jacob Black…" I jokingly elbowed him into his ribs and he crouched as if in pain but laughed. Slowly our smiles faded away. The air around us seemed full of suspense.

"Imprinting." I murmured staring into his eyes. "Tell me again. What is it exactly?"

* * *

**A/N: I'm so sorry that I'm not going to give anything away about the tattoo. I wouldn't have thought Bella and Jacob need so long to sort their stuff out. I even had to cut this chapter before it gets too long. So, about the tattoo - next chapter**


	25. Chapter 22

**A/N: ****My**** dearest readers, please do not forget to review. Doesn't this story and my efforts deserve more than 66 reviews? :-) **

**A happy face would do, you know? ;-)**

* * *

**Getting along with Charlie**

**Part I****II c) Jake's Garage**

_**BPOV**_

"_Imprinting." I murmured staring into his eyes. "Tell me again. What is it exactly?"_

~*~

Jake shuffled his naked feet through the sand, drawing lines and circles with his heels and stared into the clouds high above us.

"The legends tell we find our mates that way." He eventually said, his eyes flashing back to me.

"Mates?" I raised an eyebrow and couldn't stop the amused smile that spread over my face.

Jake clarified with an equally amused smirk on his lips: "_Soul_ mates."

I scooted closer to him as if drawn by an invisible string. He laid his arm around my shoulders and I dwelled in his heat that warmed me from inside out.

"It's said, imprinting is absolute. Final." He said and I could hear satisfaction in his voice. Deep satisfaction. And possessiveness. Much possessiveness. Had he ever been possessive? I didn't remember, but I could tell that I liked it.

But I felt possessive, too. I turned my face so I was eye to eye with him. Our noses almost touched. "Then you will never ever leave me now!" I said with a similar possessiveness like he.

Jake frowned and pulled back to have a better look at me: "I wouldn't have before neither."

I made a face, when what he said reminded me of the unthinkable and I argued: "But you would have if you had imprinted on some other girl."

Jake pressed his lips to a hard line and shook his head, raising his chin. He spoke only one single word, determined, unyielding. „No!"

His voice wasn't loud but it went right through me and I shivered. He pressed my shoulders and added softer, but nevertheless firmly: "I love you. I would have fought the imprint. I promised to never ever hurt you."

How could he be so sincere about it?

"But the imprint is absolute. You said." I answered bewildered. "You would have loved HER then."

"No." He touched my face and ran his hand through my hair. "I could never love somebody but you. I never wanted anyone else."

"But Sam left Leah, too. And you said they loved each other deeply."

"I'm stronger than Sam." He was persuasively and convincing and I strangely reassured, I trusted if there was someone able to fight the strong mechanism of imprinting, than it would be him who was more strong-willed than anybody else I knew.

"What is the point of this conversation, Bells? What do you want to hear?" He asked. "I have imprinted on you. You don't need to be worried anymore."

"I'm sorry,…" I whispered. "Imprinting was something we never spoke of. We were avoiding the topic whenever… I knew how much you hated it. And I was so worried that I might lose you one day,… that you would go, telling me that you don't love me anymore and leaving me behind." My voice was barely a whisper now.

Jake sighed deeply.

"I know you well, Bella. I know what you're feeling." His hand closed around my face again. "But please, don't compare me to HIM." The old hatred burned in his words.

"Look, I don't understand why Cullen left..." He snorted disgusted. "…and came back for no good reason. … I AM NOT LIKE HIM!" Jake was upset. I could see and feel that and I reached up and gently traced his jaw line with my fingers.

Jake calmed down and the trembling in his hands stopped. "I stayed with you. I was there for you. I helped you through your pain and grief. And in the end, I won."

I was overwhelmed with the passion of his words. And he was so true.

"I only wanted you. From the beginning, Bells." He brushed his nose along my hairline and down to my neck. His nuzzling send shivers all the way through my body and I softened in his embrace feeling safe and loved.

"Trust me, Bells. Don't doubt yourself." His voice was almost hypnotic and it had quite the same effect. He was right: I was sincere about my love for Jake and he had told me over and over again, that he loved me and that he would be there for me. I really, really needed to let go of all of my fears and just open up. That couldn't be so hard, could it?

Jake murmured into my ear: "To imprint on you is just the icing on the cake." What he said was more of a promise than a statement. I instantly felt better and encouraged I responded to the mischievous tone in his voice.

"So, just to understand the concept of imprinting…" I said playfully and leaned into his touch. "With us it wasn't the 'happens on first sight'-thing. We just skip this part and find out about this later." Jake nodded, looking curious and amused at me.

"And if it's more about finding a _mate_… and resuming biology lessons in school,…" I went on. "…we would be talking about finding a mate to procreate strong offspring." I blushed at my sudden bluntness.

"So it is safe to assume that your wolf-you wants to mate with me. Am I right?"

Jake coughed, taken aback by the unexpected change of my mood, and swallowed hard. He recovered quickly and played along. "Not alone my wolf side wants to mate with you, you know…" He nibbled at my neck and I produced goosebumps all over my body.

"Jake…" I breathed searching for my brain. "If you speak of 'mating' in the biological meaning,… than I have to inform you that I don't want _offspring_, yet."

Jake chuckled. "Me neither, Bells. But we should practice, don't you think? Just so we know how it goes…" He still smiled against the skin of my throat as I buried my hands his hair. Tugging it I softly pulled him up so we were face to face again. His eyes were hooded with desire and my heart skipped a beat.

"I might not be a female wolf, but still I'm female and I only can react on pheromone emitting eye candy… and to know this is all mine now…" I whispered over his lips and Jake's eyes darkened. "But maybe it's just the imprint pull." I teased him.

"Maybe…" Jake admitted and the seriousness that had still lingered in his eyes finally faded away and made way for … I gulped… _lust_. His voice dropped and the next words were not much more than a growl low in his throat. "And maybe it's only the imprinting pull that makes the imprinted wolf wanting to claim its imprintee."

His words rushed through me like a strike, down to the center of my body.

"But my human me wants to claim _you_ too, Isabella."

His lips moved from my lips to my neck and then he bit down gently on my collar bone. Playfully only, but veeeeeeeeeeery sensual. I gasped and fisted my hands in his hair. _Oh… my! _I wasn't sure if I wasn't fainting anytime soon. First to hear him saying my full first name, second his bite. I felt dizzy and grabbed his hair a little harder than intended to keep me steady.

Jake growled again and pressed me to his body but then pulled away much too soon for my liking.

"Why did you come with my car?" He asked distracting and my eyes popped open. Who cares about a tiny blue car right now???

"My truck broke down right in front of your garage." I muttered and scowled at him. "Your dad said you would be fine if I used your car to drive to First Beach. You okay with it?"

"I am." Jake stood up and pulled me up to my feet. I swayed a little and rubbed slightly over the spot where his teeth had been seconds ago.

"I should check your car then. Let's go home. It's getting cold now and you will be freezing soon."

"I won't be freezing. I'm with you." I corrected him and standing behind him I wrapped both of my arms around his waist.

"I don't want to go back yet." I kissed him between his shoulder blades and was rewarded with a shiver that ran down his spine.

"Me neither." He said with regret.

"Then don't. Stay here with me." I begged and I felt myself flushing.

He shook his head. "No."

"Why?" I wanted to know. I pursed my lips, pouting like child.

"Because I'm not sure if I could stop if … if we go on like this." He turned around and buried his hand in my hair and I pressed my body flash to his.

"Then don't stop." I argued, trying on an enticing voice.

He pecked my lips and adamantly pulled me towards the rabbit. "I want our first time to be more romantic, you know?!" He stated. "As much as I like this beach, you deserve better."

I stopped in my tracks (and he let me stop) and stared at him with awe. Actually I had been the level-headed one once, but now he was the one that kept a cool head. Paradoxically I didn't feel rejected although he was turning down my plea for staying here with me. With Jake, I knew I would discover all secrets of a physical relationship very soon. From now on it was only about waiting for the right time and the right place. Quite natural, quite normal. I huddled into his chest kissing his pectorals.

"I seem to have quite the effect on you, baby." Jake smirked at me. How could he be joking now? I cleared my throat trying to recover my countenance.

"Just pheromones, don't be too smug about it…" I waved my hand dramatically and seeing his face I burst into laughter. Jake glared at me with narrowed eyes and traced his finger from my lips, down to my throat, stopping where the zipper of my shirt started.

"It's only a pleasure deferred, Bells." He said huskily into my ear. I swallowed hard, the laughter dying in my throat.

"A promise is a promise, Jacob Black." I managed to say, ignoring that I was rather panting than breathing regularly.

"You bet!" Jake planted another kiss on my lips before he grinned down at me.

~*~

I drove us back to La Push and parked the rabbit behind my old truck in front of Jake's garage.

"It decided to give up right here." I told him.

"It knows its master." Jake wagged an eyebrow and managed to scramble out of the rabbit before I could run around the car and open his door.

"Sit down in your truck and put it in neutral. When I tell you, you release the brake. I'm going to push the truck into the garage." Jake ordered, while he opened the gate.

I did what he told me. It would be an easy thing for him, even with only one arm at disposal.

"Let go!" He shouted and I released the brake. I felt a strong push and the car moved an inch forward. Jake pushed once more, using more force this time. The truck moved again and started to roll into the garage. All I had to do was to keep the track properly.

I hit the brakes when the car was standing completely in the garage.

Jake walked around the truck and pushed the hood open. He ordered: "Start the motor."

I turned the ignition, but the truck stayed dead. I climbed out of the truck and stopped next to him as Jake stared into the car. He reached out and checked on the cables and grabbing one of the metal tools from the bench he rattled and probed the interiority for defects. I didn't understand what he was doing. I just admired his long frame bending over the hood.

"Try again." He said after a while and I climbed back into the truck and turned the ignition again. The truck roared to life, backfired and died.

"That will need a closer inspection and more time and two hands." He muttered throwing the metal tool back on the bench. He stood next to me in the open driver's door. "But you can use my car until then…" He offered. "I can't drive anyway." He shrugged his shoulders and raised his hurt arm.

"I'd love to, if you don't need it…" I beamed. HIS car!!!

"You're welcome, Bells."

I remembered that I had brought something with me.

"Jake, I don't know, but if you're already on the truck, maybe you could try to fix my stereo too?" I asked him and reached for my backpack. I opened it and handed him the wrapped angular box that contained the stereo Emmett had given to me for my 18th birthday.

"Maybe it still works…" I said and flushed ashamed when I saw the damages I had done to the dashboard and to the stereo in my rage to get it out of my car.

"It would be a shame to let it rot in my closet, don't you think? We shouldn't waste resources." I explained and meant it.

"Sure. No big deal." Jake took the stereo and watched it closely. He whistled through his teeth and his eyes lightened up. "This is hot stuff! Prime quality. Money is not an issue for them." Despite his enthusiasm for the stereo he was muttering to himself, but nevertheless climbed into the truck.

"Let me see…" He scooted down into the footwell.

Again I watched fascinated how he pulled some cables here and poked around there.

"On the bench there is a small screwdriver. I will need it." He said from under the cables. I hopped out of the truck and _yeah_ even found the tool he was asking for. I handed it to him and he sorted out the cables and he put the stereo halfway into its place. His slender and long fingers and the concentrated look on his face distracted me and soon I was admiring him and how graceful he moved his hands and how he just exactly knew what to do with all those cables. Heat pooled between my legs and I wished his fingers on my body rather than at my car.

Narrowing my eyes my vision got a little blurry and as the contours faded into each other I noticed how sexy the contrast between his dark russet coloured arms and my pale skinned legs was. I pressed my thighs together which caused Jake to glance up. He inhaled sharply and his voice dropped an octave.

"Bells?"

I bit my lip. His husky voice was so sexy.

"I admire your handiwork." I heard myself say and knew that he understood what I actually wanted to say but didn't. With satisfaction I noticed that Jake's face went blank. But he recovered quickly.

"Easy, babe. Don't play with fire." He warned me but with a mischievous smirk playing along his lips.

"That's what my mom always said." I answered back and rolled my eyes.

"Good girls listen to what their mother says…" Jake mumbled to himself, but I heard it anyway. I giggled. I loved our equivocated bantering.

"I will need your help now, Bells." He murmured, his eyes lingering on my legs. Then his hand snaked over my left ankle and moved down to my foot. His pointer moved over the leather of my shoe and he mumbled. "I love your red shoes." He kissed his way up from my toecap to my knee. My breathing hitched.

"Give me your hands." Jake said. I leaned down and he showed me the two cables he held in his hand.

"We have to repair these since you ripped it apart. The bare ends must intertwine." He handed me the broken cable and with trembling fingers I fumbled around until I had managed to twist the bare ends around each other. Holding the screwdriver between his splendid white teeth Jake put the stereo in its place with his good hand and with a click it was secured and looked just like before – plus some scratches.

"Turn on the radio." Jake said and I did so. The radio came to life, finding the local radio station at once. For a moment we listened to the song it was playing and Jake was visibly pleased with himself.

"You even can put your IPod in there." Jake pointed to a port at the stereo, took my IPod that I had carelessly chucked on the passenger seat and plugged it in the stereo. Disco beats pumped through the truck.

"Lady Gaga? Really, Bells?" He wagged an eyebrow at me. "This is a crazy chick, but her songs rock!"

"My mom picked it. I just listen." I shrugged my shoulders. Really, I didn't know so very much about pop music.

"I need to check if the CD-drive works as well." He clambered to his feet, hopped out of the truck and disappeared in the back of his garage. When he returned he held a blank, unlabeled CD in his hand, put it into the CD-drive and pressed the 'CD'- and the 'Play'-button. He sat down next to me and a country song started. I listened to the male voice, that sounded quite young and I must admit that I liked the song.

_She had a shiny little beamer with the ragtop down  
sitting in the drive but she wouldn't get out  
The dogs were all barking and a wagging around  
And I just laughed and said yall get in_

"Really, Jake." I imitated him. "Country?"

He cocked his head to the side and reached out to tug a strand of my hair behind my ears.

"The song isn't that bad. Just listen…" He said.

_I can take you for a ride on my big green tractor  
we can go slow or make it go faster  
down through the woods and out to the pasture  
long as I'm with you it really don't matter  
climb up in my lap and drive if you want to  
girl you know you got me to hold on to  
we can go to town or baby if you'd rather  
I'll take you for a ride on my big green tractor _

"Why do I have the feeling that this guy doesn't sing about riding a TRAKTOR at all…" I murmured getting lost in Jake's eyes.

Jake leaned closer. "You think?"

And I leaned closer. "Umm, yes."

The tension in this car was almost palpable. His long fingers wandered from my knee to my thigh and back again.

"Your dad?" I said, suspiciously eyeing the gate. Billy wasn't handicapped by his wheel chair anymore. It would be no problem for him to pay us an unexpected visit in the garage.

"He won't come in. It's my place. He will leave us alone." Jake answered and staring into his eyes I knew I only needed to give my okay and we would be back to where we started this morning.

"Jake." I whispered almost inaudible. He would hear me though. I longed to be close to him.

"Come here." He said with a similar longing in his voice and extended his arm in a welcoming gesture. I crawled over to him and straddled his lap. Jake wrapped his long arm around me.

His soft hot lips welcomed my mouth in an _oh so_ sweet kiss that quickly became more and I got caught in the spell of his passion. His good arm held me in his lap just like he had hold me this morning, only that now his hand already was under the hem of my shirt. He trailed small open-mouthed kisses from my lips to my jaw and my throat.

Jake's proximity was overwhelming, exhilarating even, making me lose all coherent thoughts. I ran my hands over his back and his chest, feeling the well-defined muscles and I felt so powerful seeing how much he liked it. Jake moaned into my neck. The sound of it was more than encouraging and I leaned forward to kiss his neck and his shoulders.

"Bells, I want under this shirt of yours." He breathed and his hand caressed the small of my back. Heat detonated in my insides. _Oh my! This is it._ I thought when he steadied me on his lap and his hand slowly moved to the zipper of my shirt. My hands stilled on his shoulders and I stared into his eyes.

"Breath, Bells." Jake whispered and I inhaled deeply. He smelled so good of sunshine and forest and himself.

"Jake,…" I whispered, thinking of the bruises all over my chest. It wasn't looking so fine and I felt a little unsure.

"I'll be careful." Jake answered as if he could read my thoughts. He slowly dragged the slider down millimetre for millimetre.

He stopped when he had exposed the upper part of my torso. I knew the tattoo was still fine hidden under the fabric of my shirt, but my breasts, barely covered by my plain black lace bra, he could see.

"Bells, you're stunning." Jake said in a very low, very sensual voice and pressed his lips to my collarbone, my throat and to each single strip of skin that was laid open to his view. I writhed under his admiring stare and whispered: "As if you haven't seen any boobs before…"

Jake looked up and grinned impishly. "My sister's… But that doesn't count."

His big hand moved over my shoulder down to my ribs, yet avoiding touching my breasts.

"And Leah's…" He chuckled and gently squeezed my waist. My skin was humming in anticipation. "But that doesn't count either." He looked up to me from under his long dark lashes. I nearly got lost in his smoldering eyes.

"And Em's and Kim's… through the guy's eyes…" A big white-toothed smile spread over his face. His eyes were twinkling.

I squeaked and smacked his chest. "You're the devil, Jacob Black!"

He caught my hand and started to kiss the knuckles and the fingertips. Then flipped it around and with his tongue he drew a circle in the palm of my hand and blew slightly over the wet trail. I groaned and shifted in his lap. Holding my hand close to his chest, he looked me in the eyes and then bent down to my breasts. He wouldn't stop to look into my eyes when his lips brushed over the hollow between my breasts.

Gone were the jokiness and the fun. He slid the zipper down to the bottom. My shirt fell open and exposed my torso completely.

Jake didn't see the tattoo first since he was so fixed on my boobs. He groaned when he kissed the cleavage and inhaled deeply.

"God, you smell so good, Bells." His voice was vibrating through his chest. His long arm wrapped around my waist again. I felt so tiny and so delicate and was panting heavily by the time his fingertips moved over the tender flesh of my belly, right over the over-sensitive inked skin.

He must have felt the different texture under his fingertips. He paused, looked down, looked back at me and then back to where his hand rested. His eyes widened and his breath left him in a big rush.

My heart thundered furiously against my chest, while my entire body was flushing once more. What would he say? Would he like it?

"Bella. What did you do?" He asked bewildered and his voice caught in his throat.

"I got a tattoo." I said simply but proud.

There were so much emotions showing in Jake's face. It was beyond of everything I had wished how he would react. His eyes darkened and He pushed the fabric aside almost frantically. I pressed my legs against his thighs feeling slightly dizzy and thrilled.

"Lean back, babe. I need to see all of it." Jake instructed exhilarated and pushed me backward against the dashboard, gently but with vehemence. I grabbed behind me, holding on to the handle over the door and the steering wheel. Oh God! How erotic was this? I felt vulnerable and exposed, being sprawled out almost half-naked in front of him, but found that I liked it. It felt good. I felt mighty powerful, that I had taken him by surprise like this. I was proud of my tattoo. I was an expression of how I felt for him and how I saw the two of us. Looking at Jake being stunned by the work of art inked into my body was worth any pain I had suffered for getting it on my body.

With his pointer he followed the contours of the tattoo and when he stopped, I knew exactly on which part on the tattoo his finger was.

"Do you like it?" I asked him. I let go of my grip on the wheel and reached out to touch him. My hand closed around his arm. He locked his eyes with mine. His look was intense, burning and full of affection.

I noticed a low growl starting deep down in his chest. It was reverberating from him, sending vibrations through my body. His voice was husky when he answered: "You don't know how much, Bells."

* * *

**JPOV**

I felt her eyes on me all the time. When I was checking the truck, she ogled me. When I connected the stereo to the tuck, she ogled me. Her presence was overwhelming and in the proximity of the truck downright dangerous. All the bantering and joking to and fro heated the atmosphere even more. I saw Bella shifting her legs, rubbing her thighs… _Jeez!_ How can a man resist this?

I had turned her down on the beach, because… well, I might not be the romantic music and burning candles kind of guy… but having grains of sand scraping between one's buns would suck. And, yes, I wanted to make love to Bella, enjoy her body and not have a quick lay with her. But now, having her beautiful legs right before my eyes and her scent filling my senses, my self-restraint was faltering, but I managed to control - somehow.

I was lost in her at once when she straddled my legs again and wrapped her arms around me. I couldn't keep my lips from her, let alone my hand and I felt handicapped because of my broken arm, that kept me from very un-gentlemanly groping her. Ugh. But one hand was better than no hand and I really, really wanted to touch her everywhere. How would she feel like under her shirt? As soon as I was thinking about it my mouth did the talking thing: "I want under this shirt of yours."

Ugh, I sounded like a horny dog, but well, being honest with myself I was horny, darn horny. There's no denying it and since I had imprinted on her it had gotten worse, not even our making out session this morning had lessened the itching in my body.

Bella stilled and surprised stared at me. I realized she had stopped breathing.

"Breath, Bells." I murmured and she deeply inhaled. Still she was hesitating. Maybe she was just shy or her bruises would still be aching. I didn't know, but she didn't say 'no' either. And I wouldn't find out if I didn't try at least.

"Jake,…" Bella finally whispered. She blushed and her scent strengthened becoming ever more appealing to me.

"I'll be careful." I promised and my hand moved to the slider of her zipper. Awfully slow I moved the slider down, giving her the opportunity to stop me whenever she decided I was going too far. But she let me go on, placing her hands on my shoulders completely relaxed and trustingly. Bluish-green marks covered her beautiful milky-white skin, and I was relieved, that it was less than I had expected.

The slider moved south and revealed the secret I had been looking for – her breasts dressed in a black bra. _So black is it… _I thought. I liked nice surprises.

"Bells, you're stunning." I mumbled paralyzed. And she smelled so good and she was excited and every time she inhaled her chest heaved, pushing her breasts against the fabric of her bra. I bent down and pressed my lips to her collarbone – so fragile -, her throat – so tender - and to each single strip of skin – so soft. Bella arched into my kisses, her response was overwhelming. My belly clenched in anticipation. I could hardly hold me back from just discarding that shirt and that bra. All I wanted to do was burying my face between those lovely breasts. When I looked into her face, she was smiling at me and whispered teasingly: "As if you haven't seen any boobs before…"

Thankful for her distracting words I managed a grin. "My sister's… But that doesn't count." Okay, thinking of my sisters might help to get myself together. But my hand had an own will. It touched her round shoulders and the fingertips trailed down to her ribs.

"And Leah's…," I chuckled and gently squeezed Bella's waist. "But that doesn't count either." Leah was pack business. _Jake, you're so pathetic._ I frowned. Pack business – I was so not interested thinking about it right now. But I was nervous for crying out loud, I wanted more but I didn't know how far I was allowed to go. I didn't want to screw up. Bella was watching me through hooded eyes. A faint tremor fluttered over her skin and she sighed. My inner wolf yipped, begging for more. _Get a grip, Jake!_

"And Em's and Kim's… through the guy's eyes…" I quickly said using the boyish charm to ease the tension. She squeaked and smacked my chest. "You're the devil, Jacob Black!"

_If you only knew, Bells!_ Her words aroused me and it was about time to quit joking. I caught her hand and kissed the knuckles and the fingertips. Then I flipped it around and with my tongue I drew a circle in the palm of her hand – _God_! She tasted so good as well! - and blew slightly over the wet trail. Bella groaned and shifted in my lap. Looking her in the eyes I bent down to her breasts. My lips brushed over the hollow between her breasts. I slid the zipper down to the bottom and her shirt fell open and revealed more of her silky skin but also the full extend of her bruises. The way the bruise marks were positioned was like an imprint of my rips. I huffed inwardly. I didn't like at all, what I saw, but then we had been lucky. For the split of a second I was reliving the moment. How ready I had been to kick Cullen's wretched stony ass and then Bella so unexpectedly jumping in between and I unable to stop the leap crashing full force into her. I shuddered and pulled her closer into me. The memory faded and was replaced by her warm, living and enchanting body and soul.

_Yes, please! _I groaned as I kissed the cleavage between her breasts and inhaled deeply.

"God, you smell so good, Bells." My entire body now really came to life. I wrapped my arm around her waist. She was so tiny and so delicate and was putty in my hands. By the time my fingertips trailed over the tender flesh of her belly, she was panting heavily. I caressed the sensual curve of her waist and then I had the feeling that her skin felt different there, not like it was supposed to be. I could smell a healing wound and – ink?

I looked down and saw – colours? Confused I checked her face, watching her nervously smile at me. I looked at what was hidden underneath my hand. My eyes widened and my breath left me in a big rush. A TATTOO?????

My heart thundered furiously against my chest.

"Bella. What did you do?" I asked bewildered and felt plain dumb. S_illy, isn't it obvious? _

Not she was putty in my hands, I was – in hers.

"I got a tattoo." She said simply and she sounded so proud.

I didn't know what to think. Oh God, I loved it already. She had inked the tattoo in, before I had even imprinted on her. Only now I realized how anxious I have been about the fact that maybe only the imprint pull would make her love me back. But this tattoo proved how wrong I was.

I pushed the fabric aside almost frantically, being aware that Bella squeezed her legs around my thighs. I was thrilled. I had to see all of it.

"Lean back, babe. I need to see all of it." I pushed her backward against the dashboard, gently but with vehemence. Would she mind? I almost went nuts, my hard cock pushing against the fabric of my pants, when she held on to the handle over the door and the steering wheel, awakening secret fantasies in me. _Oh God!_ Reality was better than any dreams I had of her before. I wanted to ravish her with kisses and finally, finally make her mine.

With my pointer I followed the contours of the tattoo. It was big, covering her left flank, starting under her left breast and curving around her waist. There was a brilliant white swan beside a russet brown wolf. The colours of the wolf were exactly the shades my fur had, when I was phased wolf. The proportions were accurate, as were the contours of the wolf's face. Looking into the eyes of the wolf tattooed into her skin, I looked into my own.

How did she do that? At the time she had gotten the tattoo, she had only seen me once in my wolf form – months ago, when we had saved her from Laurent in a meadow deep down in the forest. Either Bella had a very graphic memory and the skill to describe the images in her head so vividly, that the tattoo artist could sketch the tattoo exactly how she wanted it to look like. Or she maybe even painted it herself and gave it to the artist to ink it into her body. Either way, I was stunned my voice being trapped in my throat.

Tenderly I stroked over the picture of the swan. It was so beautifully made as well. The feathers were sketched right down to the last detail. You could even see the structure of the feather, the different layers on top of each other and the shadows underneath. The eyes of the swan were shaped like her eyes were and had the same deep brown colour.

"Do you like it?" Bella asked me and reached out to touch me. Her hand closed around my arm. I lost myself in her brown eyes. I realized that she already knew how much I liked it and she was so sure in this knowledge, so darn right. I noticed a low growl starting deep down in my chest. It was reverberating from me, sending vibrations through my body. My voice was husky when I answered: "You don't know how much, Bells."

I couldn't keep my eyes from the tattoo. I took closer attention to what the wolf and the swan were doing. First it looked like an act of submission of the swan to the wolf, like you would expect it in real life – the wolf having a threatening aura, the swan clapping its wing ready to escape. But looking with the heart, not with the eyes, it turned out to be a sensual, trusting and loving interaction. The swan and the wolf were entangled and spiralling upwards and holding and touching each other in a perfect harmony. I realized that the wolf smirked down at the swan and the swan looked into the wolf's eyes and I suddenly saw the bird glowing with happiness.

"Jacob." She sighed and the sigh moved right down into my throbbing cock. I groaned and took a last look at this magnificent piece of art. I suddenly saw the sexuality in the way the wolf and the swan touched each other. I growled again and almost attacked Bella with my kisses, pulling her roughly into my arms. The level of my desire reached a new pitch. I could hardly keep the wolf at bay, but managed again. Somehow. Her heart beat in a frantic staccato.

"Did it hurt, Bells?" I asked, my good hand roaming her back and kneading her firm ass.

"Being separated from you and not knowing what had happened to you, hurt more. Much more." She leaned her forehead against mine and opened her eyes. Her huge eyes seemed to look right into my soul. "I love you, Jake. In this tattoo I will carry you with me. Forever."

"I can't tell you, how much it means to me." I brought my lips back to her mouth, indulging in a soft, sensual kiss. "I love you, Bells." Her mouth opened and she invited my tongue in.

Her hands slid over my back, kneading the long muscle strands and then moved down, coming around my waist, the small of my back, trailing along the lines of my abs. My breath was harsh and laboured from the pleasure of her touches.

The truck would be perfect. Suddenly it just was the right place and the right time, all my honourable intentions swept away. If she was willing, why should I hold back? We wouldn't restrict our love and lovemaking to any conventions. Why so? We would be just us and enjoy what we could give each other.

I fumbled her bra open. I was a bit awkward, since I could only use one hand. Bella crossed her arms over her chest. Gracefully as only woman can do, she pulled the straps down her shoulders, first from the left one, then from the right. She cupped her sweet tits with the palms of her hands.

I hooked my finger in her bra and gently tugged. Bella opened her hands and the bra fell into my lap.

She was beautiful. Her breasts had just the right size, the nipples were coloured in a light pink, just a few shades darker than her skin. My fingertips trailed the line of her right breast and the nibble pebbled. She groaned and rubbed her center against the rough fabric of my pants.

_Jeeeez_… This was too good to be true. The need to be in her, to become one with my love grew exponentially.

I buried my face between her breasts again, nuzzling, licking and nipping the tender flesh. All the time I felt her little hands on me, caressing me, teasing me.

Bella arched her back and pushed her breasts into my face. I was moaning and groaning all the while, wile I stroked her one breast and kissed the other one. I flicked my tongue over the hard little nub and Bella cried out digging her nails into my back. Her hands mimicked the attention I gave her nub and exploring touched mine. Woah! The sensation went right into my cock. A deep and husky growl rumbled through the cabin and I realized that it was me.

I was taut as a rope, the wolf in me howling excitedly to come out, to claim her, to mark her and to make her MINE for once and all times. I felt like split in two halves. I really had a hard time to control the animal in me, when I actually only wanted to be Jacob who was exploring the other sex for the very first time in his life.

_Down boy! _I ordered my inner wolf. It lay down, resting his head on his paws and huffed.

Fine! For now, just Jacob had the upper hand.

"Bells, I…" I gulped. "I want to be in you." My hips jerked into her without my doing. "But I don't know if I … ah… ." Not that I was ashamed, but a little bit uncomfortable it was though. "You show me… I mean… uh… what you like? And help me… a bit…" I don't know if she could even make sense out of my awkward stammering. "You know, since you're the one with more experience…"

She blushed, laughed out and was biting her lip again. "I've never had sex before either. I thought you knew?"

I shook my head disbelievingly. "I assumed you and the bloods… errrm… Cullen."

Bella moved closer again and rubbed her bare front against my chest. The difference to my overheated skin had a nice and slightly cooling effect. My hurt arm protested but I ignored it gratefully, when she started to nibble at my earlobe.

"He never kissed me like you do." She breathed into my ear and placed small open-mouthed kisses on the tender skin of my neck. I felt all the fine hairs in my neck rising. "And he wouldn't touch me like that." She took my hand and led it to the sweet swelling of her breast. I squeezed and she moaned in response.

A badass smile spread over my face. Could I be so lucky?

"And Arizona? Never had a boyfriend there?" I broached the subject again and she shook her head.

"Never."

I growled satisfied. _No, scratch that!_ What was wolf in me growled. It cheered even. _Dumb wolf!_

"You like it." She stated searching eye contact with me.

"I do." I confessed. I cupped her face with my good hand and bent down to her. I brushed with my lips over hers, sucking her lower lip into my mouth. We both groaned.

"We gonna find out together then. Can't be so hard, don't you think?" I whispered after a long time of exchanging kisses and more caresses. She giggled and wiggled in my lap.

"I'm going to give my best." She promised with a wicked glint in her eyes.

In a split of a second our hands were at each others waistbands in unison. Kisses becoming suddenly frantic and erratic, buttons popping open. My hand sneaked into her pants, over her ass and squeezed her appealing behind. Only the thin fabric of her undies separated me from the naked flesh. My fingers slipped under…

"Ooooh…" I drew in a harsh breath feeling her hand in my pants and touching me - THERE. My head fell back, bumping against the hard wall of the truck's cabin. I didn't mind. I was all sensation about her soft, curious hand on my hard length.

"Jake, are you in there?" I heard Quil only when it was too late and he was standing right in front of the truck already.

"Woah!" Quil, seeing us going at each other, jumped back. Bella mumbled a 'Crap!' and almost crawled into me, which triggered my protective instinct.

"Dammit, Quil. Just leave." I snarled trying to cover Bella from his eyes.

"Can't, Jake. Sam told me to get you." At least Quil had the grace to look embarrassed and turn his face to the opposite wall of my garage.

"Well then, tell him, he can shove it." I felt the anger rising.

There was no other meeting planned for today and I was free from running patrol tonight. Couldn't he just give me my moment with my imprint?

"He insisted that you have to come." Quil didn't stop pestering me and the first angry ripples rolled over my body. Could a man die of blue balls? I surely would be the first.

Why would always come something in the way, when I just wanted to be with Bella?

I was flaring with the intensity of my fury and Bella was way too close, staring petrified into my eyes, and Quil that ignorant jerk wouldn't give in.

"Jake, my man,… It's something about Leah. Seth is itchy/anxious and Sue doesn't leave him alone, having the same bad feeling. Sam says, Leah's your business, since she ran away when being under your command."

My inner wolf bared his teeth. _Up for a fight with the almighty Alpha._ It snarled and its fur bristled.

_Come on, Jake. Get a grip._ I forced in some deep and steady breaths to calm myself. But it didn't help at all. I started trembling pretty bad. The brain that belonged to Jacob Black wouldn't function like it should, my wolf side was way too much agitated.

_Being cock__-blocked can't turn you into a monster._ The Jacob side said with vehemence talking into my wolf-me.

_And how!_ My wolf-me snarled with hackles up, spurning all reason.

_This is ridicul__ous! Am I becoming schizophrenic now?_

I shook my head. What was going on with me?

Too strong was the anger I felt inside, too violently the shaking. I was turning into a real danger for Bella and she had to get out of my way.

Now!

* * *

**A/N: These two have it bad. And again they got interrupted. Poor fellows. LOL Now, what do you think about the tattoo? **

**P.S. I'm seriously looking for a Beta/Proofreader, please feel free to contact me. And maybe there's someone out there that would be willing to translate this story into German. **

**Songs they listened: **

**Lady Gaga "Love Game"**

**Jason Aldean "Big green traktor"**


	26. Waiting for you

Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or any of the characters. If I did I would never give Jake out of my hands. LOL

A/N: I'm waiting for the spring. Who else? In case you opened this chapter because you were informed I uploaded a new chapter. I figured, that I missed to upload a previous chapter. It's called "Stand my ground" and belongs between the chapters 19 and 20. Please, go, check and review. Love.

* * *

_**Waiting for you  
**_

_**BPOV**_

Quil's sudden appearance was like an ice-cold shower. I don't know how it was with Jake, but my libido just went through the floor. I startled and I heard myself calling Quil each bad name while simultaneously practically crawling into Jake to escape Quil's staring eyes. I knew I must be terribly blushing from head to toes, but tried to stay just cool and relaxed. The whole pack would see me …_gulp…_ through Jake's eyes, when they all would be back in wolf form. _Ugh._ I guess, I had to deal with that from now on. Maybe we could just scare Quil away, when we picked up where we just left off? But I was a pathetic chicken, I didn't found the courage.

Unabashed, Quil informed Jake that Sam was sending for him, because Leah was missing, and he wanted him to bring her back. Why couldn't Sam just go by himself? He was the friggin' Alpha of the pack. And if Sam didn't want to go by himself, why wouldn't he sent somebody else - there were more wolves available than Jake, and they weren't even injured.

I noticed that Jake was shaking, but instead of backing away I pressed myself into him even more. Quil wouldn't stop talking into Jake.

"Kíka! Bells." Jacob growled and grabbed my arm. His trembling had become stronger.

I lifted my head and stared at him not comprehending the unfamiliar word. Maybe it was his Quileute language, but I really didn't know. Instead I recognised that the colour of Jake's eyes was changing. Yellow dots infiltrated the deep brown and the pupils were contracted. I should be frightened, knowing the he was so very close to phasing, but I watched him rather fascinated.

Jake narrowed his eyes, pushing off immense body heat and impatiently waiting for me to move. The yellow spots formed a ring around his pupil now. "Get away from me!" he hissed through his gritted teeth. His voice was awfully strained, and it was obvious that he hated what was happening to him right now - that the situation was running out of his control.

I blinked, frozen in place. _Crap,_ even his teeth seemed to become more pointed. The canines were elongating. _Why does Quil not just vanish,_ I thought, pressing my naked front to Jake's chest. I knew the perfect way to make the angry shaking go away, but Quil was really pushy. Jake shoved me from his lap, throwing my clothes at me. Seething, he ripped open the passenger door and jumped out of the car. Strong tremors were rolling over his back.

"Jake, wait." I crawled over the seat and awkwardly followed him. My left foot got caught up in the sleeve of my shirt, and I fell forward. Jake was there, keeping me from falling. He steadied me, but then he stepped away.

I pressed my clothes to my bare chest. Walking one step forward, I ignored that Quil was gaping at me. Jake stepped back, bringing more room between us. He was becoming ever more enraged, when he saw Quil staring.

"Don't phase, Jake. Maybe you'd better go over and talk it out with Sam," I called out after Jake, who was now striding with huge steps towards the gate. I didn't know the full extent of his injury, but I imagined phasing wouldn't do any good.

"Gawdammit!" Jake yelled, and before I could even blink my eyes, he thrust full force into the wall with his good arm. He broke through the blanks as if they were mere paper.

I screeched, "No, Jake!"

_Oh yeah, bravo, now I sound like a bickering housewife. Calm down and think, Bella. THINK!_

Jake held his hand up and concentrated on breathing. - In. One, two, three. - Out. One. Two. Three.

Quil really didn't know, when to better shut up. His comment made it worse, "Jake, she's right. You can't get this worked up about Sam's order, man."

I wanted to slap Quil for his insensitivity.

"Just shut up, Ateara!" Jake shouted. He looked at Quil as if he was pondering, whether to take his anger out on him or, contrary to reason, phase and tackle Sam down. Quil suddenly found the opposite wall very interesting.

I should know better. I really should know better, especially after the incident from this morning. I really shouldn't get in the way of an infuriated wolf - but I just had to do something. The least I could do was help Jake keep his frame together. As much as I had loved to make out with Jake, we could repeat it, when he was back. The interruption really wasn't worth all that fury. Without hesitation, I now just walked towards Jake and just shrugged out of Quil's grip, when he wanted to hold me back. "Buzz off, Quil!"

"Bella, just stay put! Leave him alone. Dammit!" Quil sounded somewhat hysterical, and was cussing me out big time.

Jake stopped in his tracks when I touched his back.

"Don't. Please," I begged. He would break his arm again, if he phased and maybe do even more damage to the just healing bone. "It will only take you longer to get rid of that brace." I just couldn't let it happen. With my one hand I pressed my clothes against my chest, with the other I just hugged my Jake and buried my face in his chest. I deeply inhaled, even his scent was changing, becoming sharper, more musky and for my liking really, really sexy. It made me dizzy. My reaction to this man seemed to become stronger each time I was close to him. And though I had endangered myself enough this very morning, I couldn't leave Jake alone with this, even when the situation was tense again.

"Bells, you have to get away from me." Jake's body was vibrating from the inside out, his heart pumping in a frantic pace. I expected him to push me away, instead his good hand closed around my shoulder, desperate, as if he couldn't get away from me either. He wrapped his hand in my hair, and pulled my head back rather roughly.

I gasped, when I looked into his meanwhile almost yellow eyes and shuddered. Jake pressed a rough kiss to my lips.

"Please… It's not safe around me right now." He pleaded and nudged me away. His voice was only a deep, husky growl. Sexy and threatening likewise. "I'm just going to check out what's going on and what Sam wants from me." He almost spat Sam's name out.

I suddenly had the feeling that a big part of his wrath was about Sam ordering him around. He probably would just have sent Quil away, if that poor guy had walked in on us for other reasons. But Quil had to follow Sam's order and therefore Jake had to follow this order as well. It was how the dynamics in a pack were. The Alpha gave an order and the pack had to follow.

Sam was getting me on the nerves. Was Sam forgetting that his pack was human as well? Didn't he realise that he couldn't push them around like token in a game. Well, I had to be reasonable here. It wouldn't help Jake at all, if I flipped out as well.

"I'll be waiting for you. I'm here, Jake." I stepped back, unwilling.

"I'm sorry, man." From behind Quil approached cautiously and almost subservient. And I had thought, Quil and Jake were equal in the pack rank? Hmmm, more weirdness? "Don't shoot the messenger." Quil had its hands up, gesturing placating. "I'm only doing, what Sam ordered me to do."

"Let's get over with then. What's about Leah?" Jake slipped out of the garage, waving me a short good-bye.

I raised my hand as well, but he was gone to fast to still see it. I sighed and tried to hear their footsteps, but in fact, I didn't hear any sounds. The Quileute moved with animal grace – from the smallest kid to the oldest man.

I put my bra back on and slipped into my clothes. Maybe a little break would be good to … think. _Ugh._ Really, I was musing and thinking way too much. I shook my head and closed the zipper. I walked out of the garage, checking if I could still see Jake, but he and Quil were already out of sight. I frowned. How long would Jake be gone? What should I do while I was waiting for him? I kicked my feet into the gravel.

"Bella? What's up?"

I startled. I hadn't heard Billy coming, but now he was standing only two steps away. He looked striking, tall and lean. I sighed again. He looked so much like Jake and I missed Jake already.

"Pack stuff. Jake had to leave," I mumbled and noticed that I was angry. Had Sam done it on purpose? Did he hold a grudge against Jake for imprinting on me? And that stupid comment about my non-native background? I snorted disgustedly. HE of all wolves in the pack should know best that being a wolf you were left with no choice when it came upon imprinting. Maybe he was jealous that it had worked out best for Jake and me? I kicked the gravel again, making the little stones fly everywhere.

"Why don't you come in sharing a cup of coffee with me, Bella?" Billy offered. He always was so wise and knew the right things to say just at the right time.

I sighed and followed him into the house. I felt the strange sense of loss again. I didn't want do be separated from Jake anymore. It sucked big time.

~*~

Billy filled two cups of freshly brewed and deliciously smelling black coffee and put a lot of sugar and cream into his mug. I loved my coffee just black. I huffed and glared into the cup.

"Want to talk?" Billy looked at me, observant but not pushing.

"Jake was all upset about Sam ordering him around," I said gruffly.

Billy cocked his head. "Really?" A faint smile played along his lips as if he was thinking about something he already knew and others hadn't figured out yet. "How so?"

"Quil came in and interrupted, uh,--" I pushed my hair over my shoulders, ignoring that unnerving blush that crept over my skin. Would Billy know what we were about to do in the garage? I shrugged my shoulders and found that I didn't care. "Quil said, that Sam told Jake to come and take care of Leah. She has run somewhere and Seth is getting nervous, because she didn't return yet."

Billy just nodded, while I stared blankly at the wall.

"It really ticked him off." I summed up. "He's never been that mad before when I was around him. He was close to phasing." I sipped at the coffee, feeling the hot liquid pouring down my throat and soothing my nerves.

Billy put his mug down and run a hand through his hair. He shook his head and was quiet for a moment. I didn't know what he was thinking, but when he spoke up, he sported a mischievous smile: "Jacob should sign up for anger management training." He barked out a short, but ironic laughter.

"You think it's funny?" I asked bewildered and a little upset.

Billy shrugged his shoulders and stretched his legs. "He's making life difficult for himself."

I didn't understand what Billy was talking about and I told him that. Billy explained: "Everything seems to upset him lately. And after this second transformation, he has to find his position in the pack again." Billy stopped and even when I raised an eyebrow questioning, he wouldn't tell me more. But I found it fascinating. Where would Jake's position in the pack be? Billy remained silent and I assumed he wouldn't tell me anything more.

_Never mind!_ I can help myself to needed information. I would buy me a book about real wolves instead. I surely would get a lot of information about behaviour, dynamics and interaction that would be applicable to this pack of human wolves. I glared at my hands, examined my fingernails and was still frowning.

"What's really bothering you?" Billy suddenly asked and stood up. He put the mug into the sink and leaned against the counter, arms crossed in front of his chest, completely comfortable with himself. Seeing him standing upright and healthy was still a wonder.

"Sam should not order Jake around," I said musing. "It doesn't feel right." Never before had I questioned Sam's position as an Alpha, but I had the feeling that he didn't belong there. I bit my lips again and wanted to ask Billy, what would make Sam the Alpha. Was it because he was the oldest and first that had phased? Or did you become Alpha per choice? But I decided against it. Billy didn't look as if he would tell me any more pack insights.

"Make yourself comfortable, Bella. I'll be outside cleaning out the courtyard. I've wanted to do this for years." Billy pushed away from the counter and walked towards the door. When he passed me, he ruffled my hair. I thought my heart would leap out of my chest. It was such an all-fatherly gesture. Did Billy know already, that Jake had imprinted on me? Was it his way to show me, that he was okay with it? Not that it would matter anyway. It would be nice to have at least one of the Quileute approve of the imprint.

"You don't mind if I--" I asked before Billy could slip out of the door. I gestured and pointed to the pizza cartons, clothes and all the other stuff that was lying around. "just tidy up?"

The kitchen and the living room really were in a devastated condition. Since I had been here last time, which was about a good one and a half week ago when Billy had been so sick, nobody had ever cleaned up. Suddenly the time I would need to wait for Jake to come back didn't seem so boring at all.

Billy smirked. "What's with women and cleaning?"

I shrugged my shoulders and smirked back. But Billy now frowned and twisted his lips. "I just can't let you clean up our mess here…"

"It's okay, really. Billy, I'd like to help you. And I'm staying here waiting for Jake anyway. So… you just go out and do your stuff." I cocked my head and stared at him with a pleading look. "I'm keeping myself busy here..."

Billy gave in and went outside.

I switched on the ancient kitchen radio and turned up the volume. Quickly I cleaned kitchen. The poor guys had to have lived from only pizza and canned food lately. I washed the dishes, took the trash out and wiped the table and the counter. Then I went into the bathroom. There was not so much to do. It was very neat and clean, just like I remembered from my overnight stay when Billy was sick. For at least one of them a tidy bathroom seemed to be important. I just threw the wet towels into the floor and cleaned the sink. Done.

But Jacob's room was a mess. I hadn't been in his room in over a decade except from the night when Billy had been so sick. But I had been far too occupied then and never took the time to look around. A computer, even more ancient then mine, the ragged schoolbag stuffed in a corner, a basketball rolling aimlessly through the room, a baseball bat leaning on the desk, a Lord of the Rings poster hanging on the wall.

Yeah, Jake had replaced his favourite "E.T. The Extraterrestrial" movie poster. I had a memory of me and him watching that movie on my Dad's couch, eating popcorn and cookies. Jake had been so fascinated when the kids came together with their bikes helping Elliott and E.T. to escape. Do I need to mention that I squeaked my lungs out all along with little Gertie when she came running into Elliott's room and found E.T. standing there?

I let myself in and closed the door behind me. His scent was hanging heavy in the room. I was suddenly aware again of the feeling of him under my hands and against my very naked chest. A tingle spread all over my skin. I gulped and blushed. I had been so bold, putting my hand in his pants. Wow. He felt incredible there, hot, silky, and … hard. I shook my head and pressed the palms of my hands into my eyes. Relax, Bella. You will have him soon enough. I pleaded with myself, trying to ignore the ball of heat that grew in the pit of my stomach.

I made my round through his room. Even when it was such a mess, I felt so homey in his room. Clothes carelessly lay on the ground as if ripped out of the closet in a hurry. I picked up everything and sorted it out in a pile of dirty laundry and clean clothes. When I folded the pants and shirts I noticed that most of his clothes wouldn't fit him anymore.

I cleaned his desk, piled the books that lay there. A book about genetics, a book about Native American Mythology, a book about Quantum electrodynamics. Huh? The books were marked with small pieces of paper and when I flipped through the pages of one of the books I wondered, if Jake was in fact doing research about how phasing could be possible. In the book I found a scribbled note. I put the book aside and stared at Jake's strong but scrawly handwriting:

• Theory of relativity, quantum physics, physical body, potential energy = How can phasing be explained within the accepted principles of physics?

• Genomic imprinting, genetic drift or natural selection (gene variants depending on reproductive success; adapting to environment)

• Is the gene inherited paternally or maternally (ed. guess: paternally)

The list went on and on and I understood… nothing. Natural science has never been my strong point. But I wasn't surprised at all that Jake would try figuring out a logical explanation for phasing. He had never believed in the old Quileute legends until he had phased wolf and learned everything was true first-hand. I put the notepad on top of the pile and finished cleaning his room.

When I had everything acceptable I collected the laundry and searched the house for a washing machine. I found it down the floor in a tiny room. iHow could Jake possibly move in here?/i I snickered. I loaded the washer and took the vacuum cleaner out. I vacuumed the floor and Jake's room, not being aware that I was singing along with the songs from the radio. Soon I was absorbed in the music and enjoyed pushing the vacuum cleaner around.

"Ah, now that's the Bella I knew." Billy suddenly stood behind me, looking intently at me.

"Uhm?" I stopped and pulled the plug, realising how loud the radio was playing. Billy was covered with grease, dirt and wood shavings. "What do you mean by that?"

"You weren't such a quiet, shy and unconfident girl before you left Forks with your mom, you know?" Billy turned the radio off.

"No…" I said slowly, hoping he would explain some more. In fact, I couldn't remember so very much about my life in Forks and La Push at all.

"Well, actually you knew to handle yourself very well when you were little. And you never failed to make your intentions clear. I just remember the one day when you pushed Jake off the swing because he wanted to swing all on his own. You must have been 3 or 4 or something." Billy chuckled under his breath.

"I never would have done anything like that." I fended him off, but deep inside a glimpse of a memory came to life.

"You did!" Billy grinned. "God, Jake was so upset. He dragged you by your pony tail into the house to complain about you."

I was gaping at Billy. "Jake's been ratting me out?"

"Uhum…" Billy was really hard laughing now. "And the huge bump on his head proved his story right. Charlie said it would be better, if you left and he made you apologize and you wouldn't. And you and Jake started fighting again. Charlie felt it would be better if the two of you left. He tried to make you apologize and you just refused. Then you and Jake started fighting again, forcing Charlie to step in. 'That's enough!' he yelled and threatened that he would arrest you for assaulting Jacob and resistance against authority if you wouldn't give in and follow your Dad home." Billy had to wipe tears from his eyes from laughing. "…and then Jacob became really, really furious and bit into Charlie's leg. Charlie's face… it was priceless…"

The corners of my lips twitched and soon I was laughing along with Billy. iCrap, why couldn't I remember?/i

"And that's how it was with Jacob. He always wanted you around and he always was so eager to protect you from anything that could possibly harm you." Billy lowered his voice, becoming serious again. "And he has never failed until today, hasn't he?" A lump formed deep down in my throat. Billy meant business. "Jacob had a hard time, when your Mom decided you would better be off in Arizona. She just kept you there, heaven knows why, and made Charlie agree to visit you in Arizona, else he wouldn't be allowed to see you. I never understood why Renee did that to Charlie."

I didn't know myself why my mom suddenly decided to keep me in Arizona. It was so not my mom and I felt guilty somehow.

"Speaking of Charlie…" Billy said and padded my shoulder. "He just called and wants you to come home..."

iOh crap!/i I had totally forgotten about Charlie. "Is he okay?"

"Yes, but he wants you to be back before twilight."

I sighed. I'd rather wait for Jake to come back. But considering my father's condition it really was better if I headed home as soon as possible.

"I'm almost done with the house. I just wanted to vacuum your room if you're okay with it? And then I'm off."

"Sure, go ahead." Billy opened the door to his room for me and invited me in. I stepped inside and it was like coming into another world. The Black's house was so virile, but being in this very room, you could feel Sarah Black's presence still lingering. The room still kept a female aura after all those years with the white curtains at the windows and the white sheets and pillows on the bed. Billy held it perfectly neat and clean. I saw the wheelchair and the clutches - stuffed away in a space behind the door.

A lot of photos were standing on an old sideboard. There were many baby and kids pictures of Jacob and his sisters. The wedding pictures of Billy and Sarah. Family pictures with Jacob's grandpa and granny. I looked at Billy waiting for his approval and went over to look at them. One photo called my special attention and again I looked at Billy before I picked it up.

Billy looked over my shoulder and said: "This is the last picture we made before Sarah died."

The twins and Jake (smiling his very own tooth commercial smile) were crowded around Billy and Sarah. Sarah had been a slender, elegant woman with pitch black hair and she had such a happy, glowing smile on her face and and Billy's gaze was devoted and loving. It almost took my breath away, but then I discovered the rounding of Sarah's stomach and gasped.

"Oh Billy. I'm so sorry. I didn't know…" Tears sprang into my eyes. I was full of compassion for Billy. What had happened to the baby?

"Sarah had been 6 months pregnant on this photo. We had just found out that she was expecting a boy. We wanted to name him Jeremy…" Billy took the picture out of my hand and caressed it with his thumb. "Four weeks later the car crash happened. A van rammed her car. She and the baby had no chance. They said, she was dead at once. She didn't suffer…"

My tears flowed freely now and Billy laid his arm around my shoulders in a comforting manner. "You cannot change things that happened in the past. You just have to be strong and go on…"

Billy put the picture back to the sideboard. For a moment he looked so vulnerable. I wanted to embrace him, but I didn't have the guts. When he turned around his eyes were glazed over. "Okay, I've got stuff to do. And you should go home, Bells. Don't have Charlie waiting for you too long."

"I… I'm sorry, Billy. I didn't mean to bring it on…" I said wiping my tears. My voice was surprisingly steady. I found myself reaching out and touching his arm. "You okay?"

Billy smiled at me and rubbed my back. "I'm okay, Bella. As long as we talk about Sarah, as long as someone remembers, you know… She's not really gone than… She lives on here,… and here…" He touched his head and his heart. "And here." Now he tapped my head. The moment was so precious and I was touched so deeply. I really didn't know what to answer on that. But Billy nudged me out of his room and towards the front door.

"Go home now, Bella. Charlie is waiting for you"

I took my bag out of my truck and clambered into Jake's rabbit and drove home. My head was practically humming from all those thoughts that were going round and round and round. So, Jake had imprinted on me, I almost had sex with him and I learned about Sarah and Jake's little brother. I had a lot to process now…


	27. Cause Everything is Never as it seems

**A/N: I****'m sorry I had you waiting for so long, but loosing DWR on TTS was rather hard to stomach. And even though it's back now, I'm still undecided if I want to keep on posting there, because I can't be safe to not getting deleted anytime again. Tell me, what you think about it. **

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement  
is intended.

* * *

'_**Cause Everything Is Never As It Seems**_

**BPOV**

When I came home I found my father miserable and sick. I mean, really miserable. Hand clutched over his chest he slumped on the doorsteps, having a hard time to breathe.

I don't know how I managed to get Charlie inside, considering my bruised chest, and that he was a strong man and way taller than me - but I did. Then I ordered him to stay put on the couch, with legs propped up on the armrest. I tried to get a word out of him, begging him to tell me what was going on, but he didn't answer or even look at me. As his condition didn't change, I called the hospital and ordered a doctor to come over.

I felt so helpless, because I didn't know how to ease the situation for Charlie.

The time passed in a snail's pace and impatiently I opened the front door after a few minutes, peering into the twilight.

_What took the doctor so long?_

Before I could even blink an eye, Charlie shot up from the couch and pulled me back into the house. He slammed the door shut, bolting it before grabbing me and shoving me into the kitchen.

"I saw something out there… before." He rushed out, face pale, breathing erratically. My heart skipped a beat, before it accelerated to an alarming pace.

_Calm down, Bella!_ I said to myself. I needed to stay clear in the head. It wouldn't help if I was being panicky myself as well.

Shocked I stared after him, as he got into motion and scrambled up the stairs, picking up the rifle from his room. Back downstairs, he put it next to his pistol that was still lying on the couch table. Charlie fixed his gaze on me now, finally recognising that I was there.

"Bella, I saw someone hiding in the trees," he said in a flat voice.

I shook my head. "There was nobody around, when I came home," I reassured him, but then again, I hadn't paid so much attention to my environment.

"I'm not hallucinating." Charlie spat, his eyes darting across the room frantically.

"Of course, you're not." I backed away. "I just said " I stopped. An uneasy feeling crept over my back. What if he was right and there was a vampire lurking around the house? Could it be possibly that one of the vampires who belonged to Victoria had survived? Or maybe it was just one of the Cullens? Edward most likely, thinking that he had stalked me for a couple of days before. I shuddered. I really didn't want to deal with him a second time today.

"I give Billy a call right now." I walked over to the phone and hastily pushed the buttons. To call at Sam's would be wiser, since I assumed all wolves would be gathered there anyway. But I didn't possess his phone number yet, and so I would ask Billy to pass the message to Sam.

"Billy," I was relieved when he picked up the phone.

"Jake isn't home yet." Billy said, laughter weaving in his voice.

"Billy, Charlie saw someone out there. You need to tell Sam!" My fear was getting worse. It was likely, that someone could be watching the house, and it made me anxious.

Billy was alert at once. "I will inform Sam. Stay inside in the meanwhile, Bella. How's Charlie?"

I looked over my shoulder, watching my father, who was pacing the kitchen like a caged lion. "He was in a really poor condition, when I came home. He couldn't breathe and his chest was hurting. I called for a doctor." I was sure that my voice gave away my fear and my sorrow.

I could hear Billy cussing under his breath, and I held my breath, because I had never heard him like that. "I'm coming over," Billy finally said, short and simple. The line went dead, and I stared at the phone, bewildered.

I turned around, put the phone at the kitchen table and watched Charlie pacing. "Dad, you need to lie down again. Everything will be fine. Please…" I couldn't stand anymore how Charlie was pushing himself to his limits. I put my hands flat on his chest. Only with all of the strength I could muster, I made him sit on the couch. "Sam will be sending one of the wolves over to check the situation, and Billy said he's going to come, too."

I could feel Charlie's racing heart under my hands, and I was so scared. "Please, please calm down, Dad. Everything will be fine again."

Minutes later, a car stopped in front of the house finally. This time, I peeked out of the window before I opened the door. Dr. Liz Mauna, the doctor who had been already here this morning, stepped out of the car. She had used her private car to come here, not the emergency ambulance. _Should that calm me down?_

"Bella, what happened?" Dr. Mauna rushed into our house and hurried to the couch. She looked very tired and I assumed that she still was on duty.

"When I came home, he felt really bad. He held his chest and couldn't breathe regularly," I ran after her, quickly supplying her with the information she would need, and only now I recognised that Charlie's shirt was drenched from his sweat.

Dr. Mauna checked Charlie's vital signs, while she asked him a lot of questions and he answered her reluctantly. When she finally put away the stethoscope and the blood-pressure gauge, I was a nervous wreck. I wanted her to reassure me that Charlie was going to be okay again.

"Chief Swan, your heart is beating regularly now, the breathing slowed down to normal again," Dr. Mauna said to Charlie. "I wouldn't put you into hospital right now, but I need to insist, that you come over tomorrow meeting me in my clinic." She pressed Charlie's hand, and with wonder I saw his eyes lighten up.

_Did he like the doctor?_

I cleared my throat, to catch the doctor's attention. When she turned to face me, a small smile played along her lips.

"What's wrong with my father?" I asked her impatiently.

"I'm almost sure that he didn't suffer from a heart attack. As you know, I'm able to learn about my patients through my hands, but - since he had all the typical clinical symptoms - I have to run more tests. And that can't be done here," She said, filling me in a possible diagnosis. "I'm not being carefree though. I prefer double checking and not to rely on my hands only."

Charlie muttered quietly to himself, and Dr. Liz laughed out, padded his hand, while bending down to answer his question. The gesture looked shockingly intimate. I didn't understand what she was telling Charlie, but he looked more comforted then.

I jumped, when I heard a knock at our door. My hand flew to my heart.

"Bella, it's me, Seth." The front door opened cautiously and Seth let himself in.

"Seth," I said reluctantly. For a moment I felt disappointed, because in secret I had hoped that it would be Jake taking care of this situation. Looking at my face, Seth seemed to know what I was thinking.

"Jake couldn't come. He went after Leah." He explained in a low voice, making sure that the doctor wouldn't hear him talking. He rolled his eyes and leaned in closer, whispering into my ear. "Leah has shut Sam out. He can't hear her anymore, when they're being in their wolf form. Sam was so pissed."

I hissed, "And then he sent Jake to find her regardless of his injury?" I shook my head disbelievingly and mumbled annoyed, "Why doesn't he just leave Leah alone?" Once again in the course of a few hours I asked myself, why Sam acted like a huge arsehole.

Seth shrugged his shoulders. "Sam is the Alpha. Order is order."

"Why did Leah run off anyway?" I thought, but realized that I had said it out loud.

Seth blinked amused. "We don't know, but I bet my left leg that she followed the white wolf. I didn't care first, but then..." He frowned and his voice trailed off. When he went on, he almost sounded embarrassed and self-conscious. "I somehow had a bad feeling, and I was worried."

I bit my lip, confused. "White wolf? What white wolf?"

Seth pursed his lips, saying nothing. Given to the look on his face, I assumed that he had told me something he actually shouldn't have. I understood, that he wouldn't tell me about it. I suppressed a sigh. I didn't push Seth, since he couldn't tell me more about it anyway. I needed to get used to the pack rules. Would there be one day, when I was going to be informed about everything?

I dropped the subject, jumping to the fact, which was most important to me. "Jake can't even phase right now. How can he be able to find Leah then?" I sounded whiney. _Very pathetic, Swan. _

Seth padded my shoulder, reminding me of Jake as he did so. "Don't you worry about Jake? He has the most developed senses from all of us. He will find Leah in no time, and he doesn't need to phase to track her down." Seth tapped his nose, referring to Jake's olfactory senses, again smirking at me.

His smile slowly faded, when he inhaled deeply, and his head whipped round. His eyes fixated on Dr. Mauna. The poor boy turned fiery red, and he broke into perspiration. The smug smile on his face was replaced by a rather predatory gaze. Nope, scratch that. Predatory wasn't right, call it lusty. I wanted to kick his leg, instead I coughed sheepishly.

Dr. Mauna became aware she was being watched. "What are you looking at?" She asked amused and put a blanket over a now soundly sleeping Charlie.

"I'm trying to imprint on you," Seth explained, staring at the Doc with a deeply concentrated look on his face.

This time I gave in to my instincts, and spontaneously nudged Seth into his ribs. _Ouch._ Rubbing my elbow I shook my head. "Keep it together, Seth! You're not going to imprint on her if it doesn't happen at first sight," I whispered under my breath. "You're not supposed to tell her about _imprinting, _anyway."

Seth huffed, and Dr. Mauna smiled.

"Seth," She nodded courteously into his direction, and I swear Seth was close to panting. "I'm afraid I'm not the right kind of girl for you, Seth," she said, chuckling under her breath.

"You're pretty." Seth admitted unabashed. "I could take you out on a date." He ran his hands through his hair, and I groaned inwardly.

Dr. Mauna smiled politely, but turned him down. "I'm not interested in dating boys. I'm sorry, but that's the way it is."

"It was worth a try," Seth answered and blinked at her. Then he turned around, walking towards the door. "Paul is waiting. I have to get back."

"Seth, wait." I held him back, when I caught him looking longingly into the kitchen. His stomach was growling angrily. I pulled him into the kitchen, quickly throwing two huge sandwiches together. "Take this, Seth. And give this one to Paul." I handed him the sandwiches, and Seth smiled all over his face.

"We'll be around the house, watching over you. By the way, there's been no leech here. I don't know what your father has been seeing, but it was no leech," He whispered into my ear, making sure Dr. Mauna wouldn't hear.

I sighed relieved, and even with my weak human ears I could hear a wolf giving a quiet yip. Paul was waiting and going to be impatient. I showed Seth to the door.

"Thanks for being here tonight. We appreciate it very much…" I gave Seth a quick hug, which caused him to blush again. I liked Seth like a little brother, and I was glad he came in and not Paul. I wasn't on cordial terms with Paul, since I found him rather intimidating.

"You're Jake's girl. You're one of us. You're safe," Seth said sounding very serene, before disappearing into the night. I went inside, grabbed several sodas out of the fridge and put it on the porch.

"In case you're thirsty, here's some soda for you. And if you need anything else, just come in." I said quietly into the night, knowing they would hear me. I was answered a two-voicing bark and felt much more comfortable now, knowing they were out there protecting us.

Nevertheless, I missed Jake, and I preferred having him around. There was a dull ache in my heart that I knew would only end, when he would be back and safe with me.

I deeply sighed and wanted to go inside, when I heard a bike approaching. It sounded like Jake's machine, and I cherished hope that it could be him. When the motorcycle turned around the corner I recognised, that it was not Jake but Billy.

Billy was racing way too fast. Good thing, that Charlie was sleeping. _Haha._ I waited for Billy to arrive. He killed the engine before he was close to the house and parked it on the sidewalk.

I hugged Billy, when he entered and closed the front door behind us. Charlie was still sleeping, having his hand clutched around Dr. Mauna's.

"Is he feeling better now?" I asked her, when I sat down in the chair beside the couch. Billy and Dr. Mauna greeted each other, and Billy chose to remain standing.

"His heart rate is back to normal. He's gonna be fine. I'm very sure about that. But really, Bella, your father needs to come to the hospital tomorrow, having the tests done. I would feel much better about it." She freed her hand out of Charlie's grasp.

Billy nodded and from the look on his face I could tell, that he personally would take care about Charlie having the tests done.

Charlie muttered and tossed around in his sleep but didn't wake up.

"I'm still here, Chief Swan. You can rest now," Dr. Mauna said to him, running her hand over his forehead. Charlie relaxed visibly and also stayed relaxed, when Dr. Mauna turned around to look at me.

"I really wanted to see your Jacob and look after his arm." She watched me intently. "He said he would be here tonight."

"He's not available right now, Dr. Mauna," I answered, feeling in the need to defend Jake for not being able to show up.

Dr. Mauna smiled and tilted her head to the side. "I prefer being called Liz. I don't give crap on any title. Just Liz, okay?" She blinked at me.

"Liz," I said, feeling at ease with calling her by her name. "Jake can't come tonight."

"Yeah, I already figured out, that your Jacob is tied up with _whatever_ matters." She said, putting stress on the word 'whatever'. "I just wonder…" she went on leaving the sentence unfinished and me waiting in suspense.

"Yes?" I probed curiously.

Her smile got wider, and she stood up. "I want to try something. Could we go up to your room?"

Billy didn't object, but eyed Liz suspiciously.

"I only want to check on her bruises once more," Liz said explaining.

I thought, maybe she's doing some woo-woo miracle with her hands making the bruises heal more quickly? I ignored the voice in my head that warned about not trusting people so easily. But there was something about that woman, which simply made her trustworthy. I realized that I liked her. I led her up the stairs and into my room.

"Sit down, Bella. Okay, here's the thing." She took my hand between her two hands. "I told you, I can see into a body through my hands."

"I know." My voice was barely more than a whisper.

"But there's more. I could help you building up a connection to Jacob to where he is right now. And through this link I would be able checking his arm. I know it sounds sort of weird, but would you like to try this?"

Her voice could talk the dead into living again. It was just so convincing. Maybe she was a witch or a sorceress? When werewolves and vampires existed, why not witches too?

I hesitated, but she just went on. "You're guarding yourself, Bella. I can see the shield around you. It's like a force field that's blocking your aura. If you let this guard down, I can connect you to Jacob."

"I've got a shield? What are you talking about?" I stood up and crossed the room. Staring out of my window, I could see a wolf fading with the shadows of the forest.

"Sounds weird, I know." Liz kept on talking and closed the distance between us. Her hands moved around me, following the contours of my body without touching me.

"Your shield, it's in a deep red colour. It blocks me. I can't see your aura."

Within the next minutes she coaxed me into trying, speaking to me softly, and her voice soon taking a tranquilizing edge. My eyes drooped and my legs began shaking.

"Lie down, Bella. Nothing and no one will harm you." She led me to my bed and I lay down willingly. A part of my conscious brain cried out protesting. But then I couldn't do different than just trusting her.

"Think of Jacob, Bella. Think of the moment when you first saw him this morning. Remember, how you felt welcomed and loved." Her voice was lulling me more and more, and I drifted off in a state between being awake and dreaming.

I realized that the conscious part of my brain was still working, wondering how she could possibly know. She hadn't been there with me when Jacob had imprinted on me. I sank deeper into my hypnotised state pulling the pictures from my mind.

_I saw Jacob standing at the end of the road, waiting for me. __Then I remembered how he had embraced and kissed me, and suddenly I could hear him repeating over and over again: __**Mine. She's mine. Oh God, I imprinted on her. Bells is mine now.**_

Nobody had to tell me. I just knew instinctively, that I was granted hearing his thoughts. I smiled and dwelled in the feeling of how much he loved me. Never in my live had I felt so beloved and safe before, but at this very moment when he had imprinted on me.

"That's right, Bella. You're right there. Stay in this feeling." Liz' voice forced its way into my consciousness. I gave in willingly, floating on the wave of unadulterated love. "I can see your aura now, Bella. It's violet and so, so beautiful."

I tried to open my eyes and see for myself, but my eyelids were so heavy. I couldn't even blink. Panic racked through me, but Liz stopped it at once.

"Calm down, Bella. You're doing fine. Everything is alright."

I felt her hands on my right arm. "Remember the feeling Bella. Let your guard down. You're safe here. The young wolves are out there patrolling."

I wanted to answer her but my lips were like glued. I could form no coherent word. Liz kept on talking, explaining to me: "As soon as I can see your aura again, I will try building a connection to Jacob. Just stay calm, alright?"

I held on to the thought that she could somehow connect me to Jake.

_Jacob, my Jacob!_

I saw him standing before me, smiling my favourite smile and wrapping his strong arms around me, embracing me, holding me, protecting me.

This time I could feel how the guard went down, and I found that I liked the feeling. It made me free, and I just wanted my spirit to separate from my body. _Would I be able to fly and go searching for Jake myself?_

"Easy, Bella. You're not strong enough yet to leave your body." Liz' hands held me grounded. I felt warmth coming from her hands. It was nothing compared to Jake's searing heat, but it quickly spread from my arm throughout my entire body. And suddenly…

_Yes__!_ Suddenly, in my head, I heard Jake breathing.

"Oh!" I cried out in surprise, struggling against the strange sensation.

"Shh, calm down, Bella. It's okay. You're okay. You're here with me. Now tell me, what you see…" Liz escorted me through this strange journey. I concentrated on Jake again, and his breathing became more prominent. I felt him moving, working his long legs in a fast pace over the ground.

"He's running." I reported. "He's running in human form. He's following Leah's track…" I tried to take in as much impressions as I was able to. I couldn't see, but I could smell, what Jake smelt and I heard, what he was hearing. Somehow I felt as if I was in his body or - in a strange way – all around him. I breathed in his scent and I reached out, trying to touch him.

Jake skidded to a halt. "Bella?"

My eyes popped open. "I'm here, Jake!" I looked around, but I was still located in my room. Frustrated, I pushed my fists into my mattress. "Liz, we need to try again," I demanded.


	28. Where I come from

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

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A/N: Sorry for the long wait. I hope to not let you wait that long again. Reason is, I'm revising this story. The first chapters have been going through some major changes, they are longer now and they have been beta'd. I'd like you to check and give me a review about what you think. Also, I recently wrote a Jacob/Bella O/S for the "Fun with your clothes on" Contest here on . It's called Undisclosed Desires and you can vote for this story until the end of May 5th. You find the story over my profile and this is the link for voting (take out parentheses): http://www(dot)fanfiction(dot)net/u/2291087/FunWithYourClothesOn

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**Chapter 28 – ****Where I come from **

**~~Bella~~**

We didn't manage building up the connection to Jacob again. I was far too anxious to relax enough. I couldn't lay still on the bed, my legs bounced up and down in relentless uneasiness.

"That won't work anymore tonight," Liz said at some point, looking really tired, and I felt bad for stealing her precious time. She would need to sleep after a long straining day at the hospital.

I sighed and stood up from my bed, ready to see Liz to the door. She stopped me and insisted to have a look on my bruises. I pushed up my shirt, and Liz trailed her fingers over my ribcage and my chest.

"Could have been worse," she mumbled under her breath and at last she applied some healing moisture on the tattoo, again praising its beauty and how quickly it was healing. Then she drove off, but not before checking on Charlie for a last time.

I was all churned up inside and though I would need to rest, given to the lack of sleep from last night when I had travelled across the country to head home, I held myself busy in the kitchen, preparing a meal for Billy, Charlie and me. I put some pasta and sauce aside for Charlie, should he be hungry when waking up.

"So, what did the little doctor say about your bruises? Is everything healing well?" Billy asked while setting the table.

"Yupp," I answered reluctantly. I knew he was expecting that I spilled the beans telling him, what had happened in my room.

We sat down and he dove in the food, as I had never seen him eating before. The wolf gene sure had some effect on him.

I glanced at Billy and he smirked at me, which made him look like the one-o-one version of an older Jacob. He was still waiting for an answer, but given his wolf hearing, he must have overheard most of the conversation anyway. Today, I wouldn't give him closer details. I wanted to keep it private and think over it _alone_, at least for a while. I smiled at him provokingly innocent and kept my mouth shut.

Billy frowned. I could tell that he didn't like being left out in the cold, but for once in my life I really wanted to keep a secret to myself and just tell it when I was ready. He simply had to understand. Apart from that, when we had talked about pack matters earlier in the day he also didn't tell me everything he knew.

After dinner I went up to my room, unpacked my stuff, and lay down on my bed, I read in Book One of Jake's 'Lord of the Rings' book. As much as the story drew me in, I couldn't drown out my worry for Jake, and I missed him so much that my heart was in a constant state of dull aching. I was in the middle of Chapter Nine, where Frodo and his friends arrive in Bree, when it started to rain outside.

A heavy wind pushed the branches of the tree that stood before our house against my window pane, when I read about the Hobbits drinking and dancing in the Prancing Pony and where they notice a dark figure sitting in the corner. Along with them I felt their fear that this man, called Strider, might be an ally of the Dark Riders.

The noisy wind outside made a fitting background to the story, and from time to time I thought I could even hear the low thuds of paws around our house. As I read on the suspense was building up, soon becoming more than I could endure this night, and the weather somehow increased my feeling of loneliness and undefined fear. I should know better, there were two wolves patrolling outside, but I couldn't help it.

Eventually, I put the book aside. I made sure that my window was tightly closed and went through my nightly routine. After I had changed into a comfortable shirt and my old sweats, I switched off the light and tried to sleep.

Though my body was exhausted and my bruises were hurting, my mind couldn't rest. Sleep didn't come and while I tossed and turned in my bed, I remembered how Liz had made me relax while connecting me with Jake.

_A try __doesn't hurt,_ I thought, and I was surprised how easily I slipped into a certain state of relaxation, but whenever I was in transition state and close to trance, I became too scared to go on by my own. I jerked back, adrenaline flooding me, my heart pounding heavily.

Some tries later I gave up, and another hour passed without I was finding sleep. I still felt queasy and I didn't want to stay alone in my room anymore. I'd rather sit on the couch all night than being alone upstairs, worrying.

I tiptoed down the stairs, only the small lamp beside the TV giving some light. Billy was sprawled out in the chair, sleeping. The couch, were Charlie had slept before, was empty. I found him sitting in the dark kitchen, staring out of the window and into the night, looking old and worried. "Bella?" he asked alarmed, when he heard me approaching.

"It's only me, Dad." I wrapped my arms around his neck and hugged him. I was still shocked about what had happened to him and how badly it could have ended. "I couldn't sleep," I whispered. Then I saw the bowl with untouched pasta standing on the kitchen counter. "Do you want me to warm your dinner, Dad?"

Charlie shrugged his shoulders, saying tiredly, "I'm not having an appetite. I just dined on painkillers."

I didn't like this at all. When did he eat for the last time? "Dad, you will ruin your stomach. You can't take those pills on an empty stomach. You have to eat something."

"I'm going to eat when I'm hungry, don't worry." Charlie rolled his eyes at me, sounding annoyed. He wasn't acting like his usual self. Dad would never talk that way with me - usually.

I sniffed, suddenly very much feeling like a scolded kid. I hadn't meant to offend him. I only had wanted that he would feel better. Fighting back the tears in my eyes, I whispered, "Dad?"

Charlie rubbed over his eyes, groaning, because there were plenty of tender spots in his face. I could see the bluish bruises even in the dark of the kitchen. "Sorry, Bells. I woke up to a bad dream. I dreamt, _she_ got hold of you and I wasn't strong enough to fight her. And then she killed you and there was nothing I could do. I watched you dying, and in the moment I feel like the biggest loser on earth. Almighty Chief Swan not being able to help his daughter. So please, leave me dignity and trust me being able to take care at least of myself – for now, that is. I would feel less helpless if you do."

My breath caught in my throat and I wanted to comfort him, only that I didn't know anything that would actually calm him down.

Standing up, Charlie shoved the chair back noisily and mentioned, "Come, I want to tell you something." He walked over to the living room, ignoring Billy who still slept soundly, and opened the bottom drawer of the storage chest from which he took an old shoe box out. "Sit," Charlie ordered and placed the box on the table before the couch.

I sat down on the couch, forgetting the tears that had threatened to fall seconds ago. I trapped my hands between my thighs, because for some reason I was freezing. Charlie recognised me shivering and put the sofa blanket around me.

"I should have told you about my family earlier. I'm sorry I missed out on that." Charlie started and opened the box. I only saw papers stocked in there. "You remember Sam saying about you being not native?"

I snorted, instantly being upset about that stupidest of all stupid comments. "I remember."

"You maybe also recognised me saying that you are."

"Am I partly Quileute or what?" I curiously blurted out, knowing that my father's family had lived here for generations.

"No, you're not." Charlie smiled at me. "But I see why you want to be. Well, actually you've got indigenous blood in you given from both sides, meaning, from me and from your mom." He ran his hand through his hair, flinching when he came close to his head wound. "Renée's grandma was Paiute from Arizona, but her family had chosen the western life-style. They didn't carry on their tradition and language, and they never talked about their origin. Maybe Renée can tell you more when you ask her."

I shook my head agreeing and watched Charlie searching through the papers. Then he pulled a bundle, wrapped in a grey, worn-looking fabric, out of the box and put it on the table.

Charlie began, "The Iñupiat is a people who live in Alaska, mainly in the Northwest Arctic Borough, the North Slope Borough and the Bering Straits region. The Iñupiat are ethnically related to the Inuit, which are not Native American, but Alaska Natives. That just for clarification, in case certain persons are going to latch on that." Charlie looked me deeply in the eyes and I understood that he was reminding me on Sam's stupid remark earlier.

"Anyway, my great-grandfather Tupilek, born in the late 19th century, was one of them. He grew up learning that he had a special gift, and he was raised sharing that gift with the community. Being a seer and a very skilled healer, be became the Shaman of the village. As a young man he fell in love with Martha, daughter of a German missionary, who had come into the new world a few years ago. Even though Tupilek was supposed to marry the Chief's daughter, he wanted to take Martha instead. Tupilek's family didn't agree to their son marrying one of the pale faces, but Tupilek stood up against them and choose Martha as his wife. When his family didn't accept his choice, he left and with his wife he moved south – far, far away from his family, his village, his tribe. It was a long, hard journey and it took them over two years to get there. When they arrived the British Columbia Coast Tupilek liked it there, since it reminded him in some way of home, and he settled down. During the third year of their marriage, Martha gave birth to a boy. They called him Karl in honour of Martha's father. As much as Tupilek and his little family tried to build up a new life, they wouldn't get accepted by the locals. Because of that, they left after a few years and came to this area. Tupilek settled down at the Sol Duc River and became a timber dealer."

While Charlie was talking and me listening to him all ears, the picture of my ancestor came alive before my inner eyes. I was absolutely drawn into his story, but I also was more than curious about what was hidden in the small bundle, but Charlie refused to open it. Instead he went on talking. "Karl stayed the only child and he took over his father's tiny business. Oh, did you know where our name comes from?"

I shook my head. Nobody had ever told me, but I was dying to know. "Tell me."

Charlie pulled a tattered brownish picture out of the box and gave it to me. I looked at a young man with very bright hair.

"That's my grandfather Karl," Charlie explained. "He looked just like his mother, all pale and blue-eyed and with blondish hair that almost was white. And because of his "whitishness", and since he moved so skilled on the water, when manoeuvring the logs down the Sol Duc river, people nicknamed him 'The Swan'. Karl actually liked the name, thinking it was fitting in some way, and so he chose the new name over his Inupiaq name that nobody ever managed to say in the right way anyway. That's how we became "The Swan's"."

"That's really interesting," I said excitedly. Charlie had never been the one for long talks, and he seldom gave more than the bare minimum of information, but talking about his ancestors seemed to be something that he loved. I just wondered, why he never before told me about his family.

In my head I was counting through the generations, thinking about how much Inuit blood actually would still flow through my veins. I came up with only 6%, unless Karl or Charlie's grandfather maybe had kids with a local Native. "Did Karl marry at some time?" I blurted out, curiously.

Without a word, Charlie pointed to our picture wall. Of course, how could I forget? We had a picture of my great-grandfather Karl with his wife Lucy in the family circle of their kids and grandkids hanging there. Great-grandma Lucy still had long raven-black hair being around 80. Would that mean she was American Indian?

"Lucia de Luca was Italian-American. Her family had lived for two generations in America already when they moved west and she met Karl. Lucy and Karl had six kids, but only two kids made it into adulthood – Joe and Luca. Joe married Helen McIntyre – Irish-American – and they had two kids, me and my brother Danny. Danny died the year before you were born." Charlie's eyes darkened. His brother's death was a sore point and he barely talked about it. I didn't even know why Uncle Danny had died prematurely, and I had never mustered the courage to ask.

For a moment it was uncomfortably quiet. Eventually, Charlie cleared his throat and said, "You're the first girl that was born to us in generations. And that's why my Dad gave me this." Charlie picked the bundle from the table and placed it on his lap. He unfolded it, gingerly; revealing a small leather bag which was attached to a cord.

"Uhm, what's this? A medicine bag?" I asked bewildered and reached out to touch it with my fingertips, but before I could actually touch it I stopped, holding my hand mid-air. It was as if a strange energy was emanating from the bag, and it scared me.

The bag was no big sight. It had nothing of the charm of the richly beaded and decorated medicine bags I had seen before in souvenir shops. This one was completely bare with the exception of two feathers tied to it - one white, one brownish-grey. The leather was darkened with age and use, and the attached cord had been fixed several times, the knots lined up like beads.

"It belonged to my great-grandfather Tupilek. Before he died he handed it down to my grandfather, and my grandfather gave it to my father, and my father gave it to me the day you were born. Now I'm going to give it to you." Charlie took the bag and put it around my neck. The bag nestled inches under my throat, close to Jake's carved wolf.

I reached up as if the bag would call me to be touched. "What's in there?" I asked curiously as I gingerly fingered the feathers.

Charlie rummaged around in the box. "I don't know, but usually such a bag contains something that has a special meaning for the owner such as stones, herbs, leafs, feathers, fur, anything."

"Really, Dad? Crow's feet or rabbit's foot? This is gross. I'm not going to wear this." I yanked at the cord, wanting to put it off, but Charlie stopped me.

"Calm down, Bella. The feathers are the only things that are animal. I made my father promise before I allowed him to put the bag into your cradle." Charlie snickered.

"What's in there, exactly?" I asked again, but sounding rather rudely. I didn't want to be disrespectful, but I was afraid of this gift. It was as if it triggered some instinctive fear or something. Why would my grandfather hand down something like a medicine bag to me? I could barely remember him. There was only the blurry memory of a skinny, white-haired old man. My eyes flitted over the picture wall, searching for pictures that could give me answers. I found portraits of a middle-aged, dignified, all-American man, who didn't look anything shamanic let alone native.

"Your gramps Joe couldn't tell me all contents," Charlie said bearing with my bad behaviour. He took my hand and stopped me from yanking the bag off. "There is quartz crystal in the bag, and most likely sage and lavender." Charlie's voice was shaking a bit, when he went on. "A story runs in our family about this bundle. It all started with Tupilek who at the end of his life took the medicine bag from his neck and said, _'this is what I hold sacred. This is what is holy. This is what I have to give to the ones that come after me to protect and to keep it, until a time comes when finally a girl will be born to one of my sons. Give this holy bundle to her, since it beholds something that belongs to her.' _Before my dad gave this medicine bag to me, he told me the story and made me learn the words to pass them down to you, once the time has come."

It felt strange having my not at all-superstitious father talking about a sacred ancient medicine bag.

"And what is such a medicine bag for?" I asked, biting the inside of my cheeks. The bag was freaking me out. I had the feeling it would tingle against my skin, and I jumped when suddenly from the left of me Billy stirred and spoke up.

"It gives guidance, healing and protection," Billy said and bent forward to look at the bag. "I have mine always with me."

I looked at the small brown leather bag that Billy was carrying, wondering why I had never seen it before. _Probably because I never paid much attention to anything like that before,_ I thought.

"This one is quite old. It sure holds some power in it, Bella." Billy stared with awe at the bag that rested against my chest.

When I answered my voice sounded squeaky. "And gramps believed in this?"

Billy smirked. It was the same smirk Jake was using when I was arguing with him about things that were more than obvious, only that I didn't see the point. Now having Billy making fun at me made my blood boil. While I could live with Jake finding me funny, I wouldn't accept it by someone other than him. I glared at Billy. "Don't look at me like that. I didn't grow up with…" I raised my hand, waving at the medicine bag and the box and the pictures. "…all of this. I only want to understand."

Charlie looked at me and Billy, seemingly confused about what was going on between the two of us.

Billy reached out and patted my hand. "Aren't we a little snappy tonight, huh?" His eyes crinkled at the corners when he smiled. The smile made his eyes shining brightly. "You're growing a spine, Bella. And it fits you good," he praised.

I rolled my eyes at him. Laughter rippled upward and I tried to hold it in - I failed. I just couldn't stay mad at someone which such a smirk upon his face. Even Charlie relaxed. He grinned, saying, "actually, my father was a strong believer in Shamanism – much to the chagrin of my mom who was a deeply religious Catholic."

Billy nodded, breaking out in howling laughter. Perplexed, I changed looks with my father, asking through my eyes _'what's up with him now?'_ Charlie shrugged his shoulders, waiting for his old friend to calm down. Maybe activating the wolf gene was wearing on Billy's nerves?

"And then Charlie came along with his crazy, new age-loving girlfriend. Your mom was so upset." Billy cracked up with laughter.

"Dad loved Renée the moment he saw her," Charlie answered agitated and defending. After all this years he still loved my mom.

Billy leaned closer to Charlie. "That's a given. She loved all the stuff Joe told her, and he was happy that he finally found someone who was interested in his stories. Despite the fact he looked so European he was Native at heart."

Charlie nodded approvingly up to the moment when Billy started to laugh again. "Charlie, tell Bella how she was conceived. She needs to know about your secret life."

My eyes widened and spontaneously I shook my head. "I so don't want to know," I said, already looking for the infamous hole where I could disappear, only such a hole didn't exist in our living room. _Who needs to know about her parents having sex?!_

Charlie's face fell, and his was voice sharp and angry when he brushed Billy off. "She doesn't need to know."

"Coward, tell her. Tell her how high on weed you were that night. Tell her about the vision you had, the vision Renée had, and then look me in the eyes and tell me you still don't believe after all that happened to you today." Billy looked him dead in the eyes and I could tell he was absolutely serious.

Charlie was half-way over the table, almost having his friend at the throat. "I won't tell her. I don't make a fool of myself."

Billy looked around Charlie, ignoring his fit. "Bella, did you know that your mom loved to interpret dreams?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "Uhm, yes." _She even came around with an amazing conclusion about one of my nightmares, starring vamps and wolves._

"Billy, stop that." Charlie growled warningly. He looked really angry now. _Maybe I should just help him out?_

"It's no big deal, Dad. I still love you, even when you once got high on pot. People used to do that at the time when you were young." I said, gesturing nonchalantly. Actually, the mood swings in this room were most likely giving me whiplash.

Charlie choked, his eyes nearly popping out of his head. "Bells."

"No! It's okay by me, Dad. Really." My lips twitched, I couldn't hold my grin in. So, even my father had a past. Very interesting.

Charlie groaned. "I hate you, Billy Black. This is humiliating. But know that, payback is a bitch." He turned around, pretending to give his friend the silent treatment. Billy snorted in response, crossing his long legs under the table, pretending to be at ease with Charlie's declaration.

I stifled a giggle. Watching those two old guys was better than watching a movie.

"I don't know why Billy makes such a big deal out of it." Charlie began, and I felt another long story was coming. "Okay, I admit, there was this one day when I came home from Police School and my father and Renée must have been talking for hours again. They sat in our garden, it started getting cold outside, and I felt shitty, missing my brother so badly. At days like this we had used to sit together watching the day fade into night, only now Danny had gone. While I tried to ease my parent's pain over the loss, I was struggling myself." Charlie's voice dropped and for a moment I felt the pain oozing out of each one of his pores.

Billy shifted in his seat and when I glanced at him, I couldn't shake the feeling that Billy had forced Charlie purposefully into talking.

Charlie fidgeted with his fingers, his eyes flitting over the picture wall until he stopped, looking at a picture of his brother. "Anyway, I came home, and I heard Renée discussing out of body-experiences and spiritual journeys with my father. Joe was already smoking at his grandfather Tupilek's pipe, offering it to Renée right the very moment I walked through the door. I was so down that day, I didn't deny his offer, taking a drag myself and soon the pipe made the round. After some time I was relaxed, all light-headed and in a good mood. I was cracking up about seeing fireflies and Renée was in awe about some cloud formations. My old man excused himself and went inside, while we stayed put on the porch, staring into the sky and smoking that pipe. At some time Renée was about to show me a lap dance number one of her friends had showed her, and I suggested we go into the woods looking for fairies."

Charlie's head was burning red by now, while I only wanted to cover my ears. He cleared his throat and finished his story, giving me the PG-13 version. "The next morning Renée announced, that last night I had impregnated her with a baby girl, and that she was told in her dream by some powerful Indian that we should give you the name_ Taima._ Renée was positively thrilled and started to explain the meaning of the name, telling me it was the language of my ancestors, meaning 'It's enough'. I cut her off and said she was plain crazy and one couldn't name a kid like that, and also did I not get her pregnant. She flipped me the bird, and we had a really bad fight whether or not we had been careful. We ended up don't talking to each other for two days straight. Then I gave in, apologized for my bad behaviour, and proposed to her. So, that's how it was."

"Mom dreamt about naming me Taima? How cool is that? Why didn't you give me this name?" For the first time in my life I clapped my hands excitedly and I also bounced on my seat. As much as I loved my grandma, but _Isabella Marie_ sounded plain boring compared to _Bella Taima_.

"Check your birth certificate," Charlie mumbled. "Your mom had the upper hand. She agreed in me naming you Isabella when she would be allowed to add the name Taima. You ended up having three names, because your grandma Marie wanted a say in it as well."

I could see that Charlie was utterly exhausted, and though I would love to hear much more of this stories, I just knew by instinct that she should better stop know. I couldn't explain why Billy had pushed him so hard to tell me certain things of his past, but asking Billy for a reason could wait until the next day as well. Drowning out the agitated discussion of Charlie and Billy, I leaned my head against the headrest of our couch.

I mean, it's cool to know that my great-grandfather was Alaska Native and that I even carried a Inuit name, but it wouldn't change a thing. I didn't feel different about it and I didn't know what should be the big fuss. The only thing I considered was that maybe Sam would leave me and Jake alone now, when I could tell him that I had some indigenous blood in me.

While I was wondering what vision Charlie had seen, but refused to talk about, I ran my finger over the medicine bag. Would Charlie think I was crazy just like my mother, if I told him that this thing seemed to get warmer and heavier by the minute?

I yarned, feeling relaxation coming. The voices of my father and Billy became quieter. I felt how my whole body grew heavier and then I slipped to the side, resting against my father's chest. He put his arm around me, telling me that I should go to bed, but I was out cold at the next second.

_I ran and I ran. __I enjoyed the freedom, the speed, and the wind whooshing against my face. The air smelled fresh and green. I was following the familiar track of Leah. _

_Leah smelled good. Her scent was sweet__, and I associated it with sunflowers, wide-open fields and sunny summer days. Her scent was appealing, and it smelled slightly different than it used to smell. It was … appealing… in a way, but far from what Bella's scent attracted me. _

_Leah's scent __intermingled with that of the unknown white wolf, but separated sporadically. Suddenly the track became much sharper, almost piercing due to lots and lots of adrenaline and fear. _

_Embry – running in his wolf form ahead of me – stopped. His hackles were rising, his head swung around and he fixed his eyes on me. Something was not right, not at all. We could smell her blood but also his. _

_We __approached at a clearing and then I heard a— _

"Bella, Bella, wake up." A voice was calling out to me. I emerged out of me dream, fighting off the sleepiness and disorientation. "Bella, are you okay?"

I opened my eyes, finding Charlie bend over me. I had been sleeping and I had been with Jake. In my sleep I had unwittingly built the connection myself. Disappointed and groggily I asked, "why did you wake me?"


	29. More Than Usual

_**Chapter 28 – More than usual  
**_

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**A/N: Now, most of you wondered about Sam and why he acted like a jerk. He will be much more of an annoying prick this chapter. What if I told you, he's doing this on purpose? Read and think about it and tell me what you think, okay?**

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**~~Jacob~~**

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"Kíka! Bells." I growled, grabbing Bella's arms in the attempt to shove her from my lap. My muscles were twitching really badly and I was afraid of losing control over myself. Seldom had I been THAT angry in my life.

Bella just stared at me, wonder in her eyes. She should be frightened, but she was rather fascinated, gazing at me like I was some kind of God. I mean, I loved that she was admiring me and I would have gladly continued what we just had started, but there was Sam waiting for me and Quil watching the two of us – which brought me back to why I wanted her off my lap in the first place.

I felt my body heating up, my skin pulsating, the muscles tightening, my neck thickening. Crap, the pressure in my jaw was intense. I couldn't get a snout right in front of her. "Get away from me!" I hissed through my teeth, utterly hating that I couldn't trust myself anymore.

Instead of running away from me and hiding somewhere far, far away and safe, Bella pressed her naked front against me. I wanted her so badly, but I had to see reason. I was just too unstable right now.

Missing her already, I shoved Bella from my lap and threw her clothes at her. I was seething, when I ripped the passenger door open and jumped out of the car.

"Jake, wait," Bella pleaded. Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw her climbing out of the truck, her clothes tightly pressed against her boobs. She managed to get her foot getting tangled in her own clothes. Sucking in a shocked breath, she fell and I reached out, steadying her, before I stepped back creating a safe distance between us.

Quil, that dumbass, was gaping at Bella as if he had never seen a girl before, which actually was enough to drive me up the wall. I growled at him, best friend or not, my animal and human instincts responding likewise.

"Don't phase, Jake. Maybe you'd better go and talk it out with Sam," Bella called after me as I was striding quickly towards the gate. She was right, but I just couldn't stop the fury that was shaking me from the inside out. I didn't want anymore to be told what to do. Especially not by Sam. Because of what reasons ever.

"Gawdammit!" I yelled, with my good arm thrusting full force into the wall. The pain that emerged from my arm, distracted me from the need to phase. I looked up, finding that I had broken a huge hole through the blanks. Through the clouded haze of my infuriated senses I heard Bella's cry, "No, Jake!"

_Shit. I don't want to scare her… _I thought and held my hand up, showing her that I was fine – somehow. Concentrating on breathing I forced regularity into my breaths - In. One, two, three. - Out. One. Two. Three.

Quil approached, talking to me as if I was an imbecile. "Jake, she's right. You can't get this worked up about Sam's order, man."

Every effort to get myself under control was a waste of time with this one sentence from Quil. "Just shut up, Ateara!" I shouted at him, the anger creeping up my spine like thousands of fiery spiders. I very much was attracted to the idea on lashing out on him.

Quil suddenly found the opposite wall very interesting, ducking his head and hunching his shoulders to show his submission. _Yeah, right._ I snorted, flexing the fingers of my good hand. _That's just what I need. _I hated that I had forced this reaction out of him.

"Bella, just stay put! Leave him alone. Dammit!" Quil yelled suddenly, sounding almost hysterical and I heard Bella's hurried steps, her hissing "buzz off, Quil!" and then she touched my back. I whirled around, almost colliding with her.

"Don't. Please," she begged, snaking her arm around my waist. "It will only take you longer to get rid of that brace." She buried her face in my chest and inhaled deeply.

"Bells, you have to get away from me." I said, while I only wanted to have her with me, but I couldn't risk it. I was vibrating, the anger brooding within me like a volcano close to erupting.

She's so brave… I thought, admiring her and it felt amazing how she stood up for me. _One last kiss,_ that's what I want from her, before I go and tell Sam what I think of his intervention. I lifted my good hand and put it around her shoulders. I didn't want to let her go, it felt so wrong, but looking at my shaking hand I knew that I had to. I wrapped my hand in Bella's silky hair and pulled her head back, staring into her eyes.

Bella gasped and shuddered, and I wondered how much of the Jacob she knew she could still see in me right now. I pressed a rough kiss to her lips, wanting a last taste of her, the feeling of her soft lips on mine before we separated.

"Please… It's not safe around me right now." I pleaded, rather convincing myself than her, and nudged her away. "I'm just going to check out what's going on and what Sam wants from me." Only saying his name made my hackles rise. _What is going on with me? _

"I'll be waiting for you. I'm here, Jake." Bella said, reasonable, and stepped back.

"I'm sorry, man." From behind her Quil approached cautiously and almost subservient. I rolled my eyes. He shouldn't act like this. "Don't shoot the messenger," he said, holding his hands up in a placating gesture. "I'm only obeying Sam's order."

"Let's get over with it then. What's about Leah?" With one last apologizing look at Bella I stormed out of the garage, closely followed by Quil. She stood upright, clothes pressed to her chest, her creamy-white skin glowed in the semi-dark of my garage. _So beautiful…_ I thought and let my legs pick up speed.

I noticed Quil grinning at me foolishly, before he turned around and eyed Bella once again.

"Keep your eyes to yourself," I growled warningly. She was mine. Nobody had the right to look at her… like this.

"Aren't we a little touchy today," Quil said provokingly, and I raised my hand and smacked him square across the head. "Oww," he whined and rubbed his skull.

"Watch out, Quil." I felt the aggression rolling in waves over me. I still was too close to phasing. Actually, it was a wonder that even though I was boiling mad I still could hold my frame together.

So what… I muttered inwardly. If it wasn't for Bella, who had been so concerned about it, I would have phased minutes ago. Broken bones be damned.

I took in a long breath, trying to calm myself. It was futile. How dare Sam to take me away from Bella. Thinking of Sam and my aggression level increased a hundredfold. I pushed my legs further.

Quil followed in my steps, passed me by and guffawed suddenly. "Man, is that a gun in your pants?" He howled with a goofy grin plastered upon his face.

My head snapped up and I glared at him. "No, this is my magic wand," I answered sarcastically. "A few strokes and I'm off to Neverland."

Quil roared out, "That's a good one." He was mightily amused about my… um… situation.

"Couldn't you come some times later? You damn ruined it for me," I snapped, rolling my eyes at him again, and since he walked right behind me, I kicked him in the left shin. Quil howled again, and I felt a little better.

"Ah, dude. Stop that." Quil shouted, rubbing his shin while he hopped about one leg and tried to keep up with me. "Remember, I'm just the messenger."

"Than pass the message delayed. Dammit, Quil." I complained. "Can you possibly tell me, how I should walk into the meeting like this?" I waved my good hand at my midsection. "I'll shock the kiddos for life." I balled my hands to fists, searching for a reason to vent out my frustration on Quil again.

After all, it was Quil that had walked in on Bella and me. And now, my male parts hadn't recognized that time for making out was over, and I, embarrassingly enough, would meet with the pack with a hard-on of epic proportions. I huffed and kicked a stone with my foot, sending it flying. I missed Quil only by millimeters.

Quil ducked his head, muttering something unintelligible and stayed out of my way until we arrived at Sam's.

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We stepped into the house, said _hello_ to Emily in the kitchen, and found Sam and almost all of the pack cramped into the living room. I was zero calmed down, and seeing Sam ending a dispute with Seth, didn't do anything good for my aggression level. Seth looked pissed, and I was damn sure that Sam just went all Alpha over him and had showed him who the boss is.

_Seth is my pack._ I thought and snarled instinctively, which earned me a curious look from Sam and Paul flipped me the bird. I reminded myself that since Sam returned from Quinault everything was back to normal, which meant that we were one huge pack again – not two – and that Sam was Alpha, which meant I had no more say than the other members of our pack. Which was how it should be, how I wanted it to be from the beginning, right…?

Sam watched me closely, checking me out from head to toe. It freaked me out, but I managed to keep it cool. He hadn't really seen me since my second transformation, and this morning we all had been too absorbed into the fight and the following encounter with the Cullens. There had been no time for him to notice how much I had changed.

I made physical inventory too, comparing me to him, as I felt challenged in a strange way when standing so close to Sam. I also noticed Sam that was rather intimidated by me and that I was over towering him by at least 3 inches. Not only that, my shoulders were broader, my legs longer and my hands bigger. _Well, who knew? _

"Sam." I finally greeted him gruffly, breaking out of my infuriated haze and plopped down on his couch, were Jared and Embry were already sitting. The old coil springs creaked in protest and I asked, "What do you want from me?"

"Leah is missing," Sam informed me with arms crossed.

"And why did you sent Quil to get me?" I asked through my gritted teeth, ignoring that my wolf side wanted to challenge Sam for a fight.

"You have to bring her back." Sam glared out of the window, awkwardly shifting his weight from the one foot to the other, while I tensed, reacting to his obvious discomfort.

I found I had to respect Leah's motive to go away. "Leah wasn't abducted or something. She walked away out of her own free will," I pointed out. Why would Sam make such fuss because of it? Has there something took place between Sam and Leah? Did they have a fight? It wouldn't be the first time… "She will come back eventually. Just leave her alone." I said annoyed, feeling the hairs in my neck bristle.

"She made a spectacle of herself, Jake. What a bitch!" Paul called out from across the room.

Woah! No one disregards members of my pack. _Wait. Remember, Jake. You're no pack leader anymore._ Still, I wanted to kick Paul's ass for this comment. I decided to confront Paul with his weak point. "Say's who - the one that is irritated with the fly crawling up a wall?"

Paul hated to be volatile like a rookie and that's why my comment hit home. His face fell and he closed the distance between us with two big strides, shoving his visage provokingly close into my face. "Say that again, Black."

"Anytime." I said menacingly and jumped to my feet, towering over him. I'd just love to put him in his place.

Sam shoved himself between us and putting his hands on our chests, he pushed Paul and me apart. "Easy," he ordered and, heaven knows why, he used the Alpha tone on us. "Slow down there."

It hadn't that much effect on me. _Good to know. _To be downright honest, I was even more enraged now, than before Sam's order. _Weird…_

Paul huffed and backed down, but I saw him narrowing his eyes at me and putting his hands up in a fake apology, while the corners of his mouth lifted into a challenging sneer. _Asshole._

I couldn't quite understand the aggression I felt towards Sam and now Paul too. Maybe it had something to do that Paul had the Beta position in the pack? Do I want to step up as the Beta? I shook my head at the thought. Not for anything in the world would I want to take the Beta position, Leah belonged there. Not I and definitely not Paul.

Ignoring Paul, I turned around and addressed Sam, "Just for clarification, Leah came here, got into a fight with you and left?"

Sam nodded. "Yes."

"Do you know where Leah went?" I asked Seth.

"No," Seth responded anxiously. "And normally I wouldn't bother, but somehow I lost the connection to her. I have a bad feeling, and I don't want to sit around waiting. I need to know where she is."

Suddenly everyone in the room was alert. We all knew to take Seth's sense of foreboding seriously.

"Leah informed me that she was going after the white wolf. I told her to wait and that we would join her as soon you were back, but she refused. We argued if or if not she should go unprotected and alone. And then suddenly she yelled at me I should mind my own business and off she went…" It was odd, but Sam willingly provided the information I needed to know, in front of the entire pack and even when it obviously put him in a bad light.

"Jake?" I hadn't recognized that Emily had come into the living room. She hugged herself and her face was worried. She didn't look so well. I fact, she was strangely pale and Sam looked at her as if he was afraid that she might pass out. "Leah was very upset about something." Emily said. "More than usual, you know. I had the feeling it had nothing to do with Sam this time…"

I nodded, thankful for the extra information, and Emily went back into the kitchen where she pushed around pots and stuff louder than normally. _I wouldn't like to be in her shoes,_ I thought, considering that Emily was the reason why Sam broke with Leah. I shrugged my shoulders. It was nothing of my business.

"But what's lost on me," I said, turning back to Sam. "Why me of all people? I'm injured and can't phase right now. Why should I go after her?" I didn't tell him that I made up my mind minutes ago and was ready to leave. There was no way that I would not want to help a pack member. But I saw no reason, why Sam found ME in particular qualified for this mission.

"I can't hear her anymore when we are in wolf form, Jacob." Sam told me, while his back was even more rigid than normally. Yeah, I would find it embarrassing too, if one of my pack members shut me out like this, but I couldn't be sorry for him. After all, if he would handle some situations with a little bit more sensitivity then probably Leah wouldn't freak out so often.

Sam raised his eyebrow as if he knew what I was thinking. "None of us can hear her anymore," he emphasized, looking me deep in the eyes. _Oops, didn't know that._

"Still, I don't understand why you want me to go." I repeated stubbornly, but considering Seth's concern, I felt like shit for not being on my way already.

"You have the most developed senses out of all of us," Sam proclaimed and pointing to my arm, he added, "You wouldn't even need to phase to find her."

Sam was probably right about that. Since my second transformation I saw, heard and smelled extraordinary and also I had developed the ability of our ancestors to disconnect my soul from my body. I nodded seriously, thinking that this ability would actually heighten the chances to find Leah really soon, which would mean I could be back with Bella all the sooner.

Even though the situation now was relatively calm and we talked through a strategy, I constantly felt the need to take the lead, to have the word and to show each one of the pack that I was bigger in height and obviously even in weight. I wanted to confront them and show them that I was stronger. I knew it was wrong and that I behaved like an ass. I even felt embarrassed about it, but my instincts betrayed me, making each thought a revolt and challenge.

Every time I heaved a heavy breath to avoid an altercation, Sam looked at me with a smug smile on his face, which made me want to punch into it, before he cut me short with whatever I was suggesting, which again lead into another heavy sigh of mine and the silent plea to myself to calm the fuck down.

Eventually it became too much for me to bear and I stood up, snarling, "I'm taking Embry and Jared with me. We will contact you as soon as we know anything new." I stormed out of the house and avoided to look into Sam's arrogant face anymore or I would have lost it for good.

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The run was quiet. Embry and Jared followed me without questioning. Embry phased as soon as we crossed the borders of La Push. Jared instead ran with me in his human form, stoically quiet and not bothering me with talking, which I appreciated very much and which was the reason why I had chosen him to accompany us. Embry on the other hand, I had wanted to have with me, since he knew with utter reliability where to search for a person. We didn't call him 'seeker' for no reason.

And so it was, but we were close to Canada until we finally recognized Leah's faint scent becoming stronger and more present. My broken arm was hurting by now and also I felt a dull soreness in my body, an unnerving reminder of my heavy fight with Cullen this morning, but still I enjoyed the speed and the wind whooshing against me face.

The air smelled fresh and green here, lighter than in La Push and less humid. I sniffed the air, recognising that the trail changed direction.

Leah smelled good. I associated her sweet scent with sunflowers, wide-open fields and sunny summer days. Something in her scent was interesting, a special note, which made her smell a little different. It was attracting me, drawing me in - somehow.

I shook my head, trying to ignore the spell her scent put on me. I cast a glance and Embry and Jared and by the way they shuffled their feet awkwardly, I was damn sure that their where effected by Leah's scent as well. _What was going on with her?_

I concentrated on Bella to get Leah out of my mind. Man, I was only a guy, a wolf above that, and I reacted to such an alluring smell. I just couldn't help it.

Like I said, I concentrated on Bella – and ibam /i– the memories of our time together today were back in an instant. Bella's body, Bella's scent, Bella's hands on me, her tattoo, her voice, and the tiny moans the made when I touched her, on top of that the way she screamed my name when she came as we made out this morning – everything was penetrating my mind full force, very effectively whipping out every thought of Leah.

Damn. I missed Bella. Terribly. I yearned to have her in my arms again. While running, I let the memories consume me. Suddenly when the thoughts about her were at their most vivid peak, suddenly I had the feeling that I was close to her. So close, as if she was with me, right here. I even could smell her and feel her presence, it was amazing. "Bella?"

I stopped dead in my tracks and glanced around. I must be hallucinating. Bella was nowhere to be seen. How should this be possible anyway?

"Jake, are you okay?" Jared asked and closed up to me. "Do you need to rest for a while?"

"Hu?" No. I just thought…" I rubbed over my face and started running again. "Never mind." Whatever I had felt, it was gone. I couldn't feel Bella anymore. Probably my brain was playing tricks on me. _Too bad._ I would love feeling Bella close to me like this. It would make the separation more endurable.

Embry, still in wolf form, stopped unexpectedly. His hackles rose, his head swung around and he fixed his eyes on me. Something was not all right, not at all. I could feel it too.

I took a huge whiff and noticed that Leah's scent now was intermingling with that of the unknown stray wolf. Jared phased, because he felt better prepared like this, and we followed the track for some more hours until the scents became much sharper, almost piercing due to lots and lots of adrenaline and fear.

We smelled Leah's blood but also the blood of the foreign wolf. Had they been in a fight? Embry and Jared flanked me, which was kind of awkward, but I had to face it. Due to not being able to phase I was a weak spot here. I huffed frustrated. _When the going gets rough, I'm gonna phase either way._

When we approached a clearing, we heard a faint moan and the smell of their blood hit me like a brick wall. What the…? "Damnit," I blurted out and Embry whined nervously. "Embry, go and check the forest on the left. Jared, you do the other side," I ordered before I had even finished the thought in my head. Both of them leaped of, following my order without hesitation.

"Leah?" I stepped into the clearing, calling out her name. She didn't answer.


	30. For once in my Life

**A/N July, 26th: **

**You were informed that I updated and I did. But I uploaded only the revised Chapter 7 "It's not you. It's me." I'm really sorry that it takes me so long to update Chapter 31, but I'm kind of stuck here. Also, I feel - okay I'm telling you this, even though it's quite embarressing - I'm somewhat discouraged. I read a lot of really good fanfiction during the last weeks and seeing how many reviews those stories are receiving, practically threw me off my feet. I mean, I'm posting for about about one and a half year and I'm not having only a fraction of reviews compared to how many they get. The worst thing is, I know how many people are following my story. I know how many are reading. I get message about being 'favorited' and being set on story alert, but somehow only some people think about reviewing. Think about it, review is the only thing an author of fanfiction gets for his work and if you don't receive the reviews you hope for... the reader shouldn't be puzzled when the author suddenly reacts strange about reviews... **

**Well, you know now how I'm feeling. Next update will be Chapter 31 - when I had time and the right kind of mood to write. CU around**

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_**A/N: I'm giving this chapter out now. And let me tell you, those guys made me crazy. Having their own heads, not wanting to do what I wanted them to do. Ugh. I'm sorry for the delay. Blame it on Jake and Embry.**_

_**Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight, but I own Michel. And that's an awesome guy.  
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_**Chapter 30 - **__**For once in my life…**_

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_- Jacob -_

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I was alert.

Embry and Jared, in wolf form, bolted through the forest, tracking down as much information they could get.

The moonlight shone upon the clearing. Somewhere in there was Leah, probably injured. My instincts told me to be careful, not to step out into the open without backing. Cautiously, I circled the clearing while having the surrounding area under close inspection. Then I heard her and I jerked to a stop. I stood on my tip-toes, head cocked, listening, slightly bent forward, nostrils flared, ears perked-up and eyes wide-open. I willed as much of my wolf side to life as possible without ending up phasing. It heightened my senses tenfold, but my muscles quivered in the effort to stay put on the spot I was standing.

At some point, my stomach growled angrily. Oh yeah, over the events of the day I had forgotten to eat properly, and the sandwich my father had prepared for me in the late morning hours was long gone. I knew I needed the protein. My broken arm would heal faster when I would provide my body with enough food, but it wasn't the right time for it now. I focused my attention back to Leah. _What had happened to her?_

All precaution was gone when I smelled the hot spicy scent of wolf blood even stronger. It was mixed with Leah's new alluring scent, but the blood smell was too dominant to even think about it. I heard her moaning for another time and I rushed to her side. "Leah?"

She was sprawled over the body of a man. One of her legs was wrapped around the guy's hip, and her head lay on his chest. Both were butt-naked and sleeping, and embarrassed I jerked back, quickly looking away. "Shit."

_D__id I walk in on her in flagranti? Do I disturb her having the time of her life? _

Again I heard her moan, and again I was sure that this was no pleasure-moan. Kneeling down next to her, I noticed that she wasn't sleeping, but that both of them were unconscious. _What the hell? _

I was utterly shocked to find Leah's body covered in black and purple bruises. Several deep scratches, where a paw must have hit her, ran across her back. A cut on her forehead leaked a little blood, and it trickled over her eyebrow and into the eye, but it was already healing, so I paid no closer attention.

I tried to pry her loose from that guy, several large bruises and gashes running along the left side of his body, but she clawed her fingers into his chest and clenched her leg around his waist. The man moaned in response, fisting his hand in her hair. _God, this is so sick. _I wasn't able to open the guy's hand without hurting Leah in the process, since he held on to her tightly. I figured that this man was strong, way stronger than the average human male. This, and the way he smelled, the typical sharp and musky wolf scent, made me aware that we had in fact found the white wolf in its human form.

_Maybe it's the moonlight, but dammit, is he pale_, I thought, studying him. His hair was the brightest blond I had ever seen, and his skin seemed to lack dark pigments. If this man really was the white wolf than his skin color resembled the color of his fur when he was phased. I shook my head disbelievingly. I'd never heard of shape-shifters other than Quileute, and now before me lay a pale-face that had the ability to change his form.

I tried harder now getting Leah away from that guy, so I could have a look at her injuries, but the more I tried, the harder they clung to each other. "Shit," I cursed. _Why doesn't she let go of him?_

Leah didn't look as if she just had a joy ride with this man. The bruises on her body, the gash in her bottom lip and the fierce swelling under her right eye spoke a different language. Cold hostility and hot anger rose in my chest. _What did that fucker do to her?_

Embry and Jared suddenly were at my side. They were already phased back to their human forms and had changed into their cut-offs. Shocked about Leah's condition, through their blood ran the same livid fury as through mine. I could feel their anger as if we were linked through our invincible wolf bond. I had never felt this bond before when we were in our human forms and it distracted and confused me.

"What happened?" Jared finally choked out, his voice thick. Seeing Leah's bruised body surely must tug at a million of negative childhood memories that he usually held thoroughly hidden in his mind.

"I fucking don't know," I ground out through gritted teeth, afraid that my anger would get the better of me. I had a hard time not to follow the strong urge, born by fury and the need to know, to shake the pale man awake. With a glance at Jared I understood that he was fighting this urge with the same intensity. Jared, coming from a difficult background, had first-hand experience of abuse and violence and he had sworn not to be a silent bystander anymore as he was forced to endure it when he was a child. I shook my head and quickly touched Jared's back. "Now it's not the time for it," I murmured. "Leah is first priority."

Jared shrugged away from my touch and sat back on his heels. His eyes were pitch-black and intense with fury and haunting memories. His body shook violently and it was not because he was close to phasing. The memories did that to him.

I couldn't help him though. Leah considerably needed more help right now. We had to find out about her injuries and if professional medical help were necessary. My eyes flitted over her body while I checked her arms and legs for any injuries I hadn't recognized yet.

With the help of Jared and Embry, I finally managed to roll her limp body from the guy beneath her and we laid her separate a few feet away from him. Since we didn't know what had happened, we wanted to have her safe and protected in case the going would become rough.

My ears became burning red in embarrassment when I decided to do the unavoidable and have a closer look at Leah, even though it felt absolutely inappropriate to look at a girl like this without her permission. _Leah is so going to have my balls if she ever finds out…_

Several quick peeks at her later – Jared staid in the background and Embry clocking the blond fiend - I still wasn't wiser about the situation we found her in. A nasty bite wound left a gash from her left waist to her belly. She must have been bitten into her flank when being in wolf form, but as far as I could tell, the bite mark was not that of a wolf but rather that of a feline predator, assumingly mountain lion. That is, this was the smell that clung to her body, accompanying the scent of the pale shifter and her own – _gulp_ – potent aroma.

I noticed that from the belly wound the blood oozed out in a slow, smooth stream, and I had no friggin' idea how to stop the bleeding. Wouldn't I make everything worse when I put pressure on the wound with my bare and rather dirty hands? How should I dress this huge wound anyway? Our short cut-off shorts could barely go for dressing material. How to apply first aid - That's something a new wolf should get taught by the council, I thought frustrated while the next thought struck me. Where would we get help for Leah if her condition wouldn't get better soon? What should we do, if she didn't heel fast enough, if the bleeding wouldn't stop by itself?We could hardly bring her into a hospital. They would recognize at once that she was different.

Leah whimpered incoherently, her breath coming in shallow quick spurts. She trashed around, searching for something to hold on to. She was in so much pain; it even followed her into the depths of her unconsciousness. Some of the smaller wounds already started healing, but the gash in her abdomen really was gruesome. I didn't dare to think about severe internal injuries. There was only so much what we could do for her out here, in the middle of the woods. Maybe, if she could rest somewhere undisturbed her wolf healing powers would do the rest. I sighed, overwhelmed by the weight of responsibility pressing down on my shoulders.

I wrapped my hand around Leah's and pressed it slightly. Reassuringly, I said, "It's just me, Leah. Its' Jake. We're here. We got you." My protective instincts kicked in, telling me to pick her up and bring her home. For a moment I was confused. All the time I had seen nothing more than a comrade in her, a buddy like all my other pack brothers. Now, that she was so vulnerable and helpless, I saw the real Leah, the girl she had been before Sam broke her heart and that definitely made the current situation even harder to handle. It intensified the feeling that she didn't belong here, not like this, neither injured nor bare. She was a girl, _for Heaven's sake_, and the whole wolf thing was a guy thing.

With relief, I discovered that Leah carried her clothes with her and so I fumbled the fabric from her left ankle. I knew that she would hate waking up naked and surrounded by her pack brothers. To be honest, when she was dressed the situation would be easier to handle for all of us, since – despite of her injuries – she still smelled so special and, as I had to admit ashamed, it affected me in ways it shouldn't. How could this be? Leah was attractive, but I had never been attracted to her. I wanted Bella, and only her. Everything that was me longed for her. But why was it so that Leah's scent influenced me so much? It hadn't been the case before. What exactly drew me in – despite loving Bella and having imprinted on her?

Legends told that imprinting served the purpose to bring forth a new generation of strong wolves. I had imprinted on Bella, so it was Bella I was meant to procreate, wasn't it? What was the sense of imprinting if I now suddenly I found Leah tempting? Not that I thought in the slightest about cheating on Bella, I would never do that to her. I loved her so much, she was my life. Was what happened to me this very moment, triggered by the wolf in me? I wasn't able to explain it with my rational mind. It wasn't something that my human side wanted, that I could tell.

But even if this was a wolf thing – imprinting was a wolf thing too. It was lost on me, and I was frustrated that my thoughts were running in circles, holding me from what I was supposed to do. I sat with a potential thread in the neck and was philosophizing about the sense in imprinting and mating. How pathetically was that?

There was nothing to compare about Bella and Leah. Not by the way they looked, not by their character. Bella was petite, everything about her was small and rather fragile – attributes that made me want to protect her, to be strong for her. She was soft and feminine, but possessed an inner strength that she wasn't really aware of. Leah instead was tall, with long, strong legs and arms, a well-defined muscular back and even abs on her belly – definitely attributes that she needed as a wolf. She was a fighter. Disappointment had made her bitter and harsh and her strength was her absolute honesty. Leah would always tell you the truth, no matter how ugly it was.

"Embry, help me," I muttered as I finally held Leah's clothes in my hand. There was no way that I could dress her with only one hand, and I also wanted to have some space between me and her.

Embry sat down next to me, took the dress from my hand and lifted Leah into a sitting position. She remained unconscious as he awkwardly pulled the dress over her head and laid her back to the ground.

A quick movement behind me made me jerk around and I found Jared kicking the blond man into the back. "How dare he touch her," Jared yelled, totally overwhelmed by his feelings. Embry leaped forward and growled, hands clenched to fists.

I jumped to my feet, gripping Embry's arm with my good hand to hold him back to join Jared. I wouldn't accept that they kicked someone who couldn't defend himself. That was beyond any moral and ethic standards I had. "Don't Jared. Stop," I ordered, staring Jared straight in the eyes, while still holding my hard grip around Embry's arm.

Surprised, I recognised that Jared obeyed. He wasn't happy about it but he obeyed. He retreated until he slumped down to the ground and buried his face in his hands, cussing out his shit wretch of a father.

"As long as we can't prove that he has done this to Leah, he's going to get his chance," I said reasonably. One was innocent until proven guilty, I believed in that. He seemed so harmless and trustworthy in his unconsciousness and it made it hard to believe that he could have been the one who did this to Leah, but I wouldn't let myself be fooled. If this guy actually was guilty, that I was sure, he would have to pay for it. "We deal with him later," I added explaining and reflexively pulled my lips back, exposing my teeth. The more hostile side of me,, the side that was dominated by my inner wolf, surfaced and wanted to beat this blond guy into a bloody pulp for doing harm to Leah.

I breathed in deeply, forcing the aggressiveness away and bent down to Leah again, absolutely at a loss why she was unconscious for such a terrifying long time. My head ached under the constant cussing of Jared and Embry's unfocused complaints as he stared at the stranger. How should I concentrate when those two couldn't even shut up for a minute? "Will you be quiet for a second?" I hissed annoyed and rubbed my neck.

Again I tried analyzing the situation we had found Leah and this guy in. Okay, so they both were naked, which could mean they both had been in their wolf form at the one time or the other. Second, they both showed signs of a heavy fight - scratches, bruises, gashes. Third, their intimate position made it hard to believe that they had fought each other, but it wasn't impossible either. I asked myself, if Blondie had fast healing abilities like we had, but then… I wasn't so interested in that at all. I'd rather the man would wake up finally, since I wanted to ask him some sincere questions.

I laid my head back, sniffing the air and stood up, walking across the clearing. Maybe there had been a third party involved that we hadn't recognized yet, but there was no other scent then that of Leah and the pale guy until I moved closer to the . When I came closer to the blond man, a sharper animal scent – very faint – surrounded him. It almost smelled like… _mountain lion?_ Had they been in a fight over the feline predator, fighting for a meal? But Leah hated to eat raw, and if she had to, she wouldn't hunt for an animal that big. Everything was still a mystery to me.

The pale guy groaned and his eyes fluttered open. He looked around disoriented, shaggy hair standing up in all directions, a haunted expression on this face. Speaking something in a foreign, unfamiliar language, he jerked up into a sitting position. When he set eyes on us – the most piercing blue eyes I'd ever seen, so bright they almost glowed in the moonlight - he gasped and scrambled back. We surely were an intimidating sight – huge shadows in the night.

"Son of a bitch," Jared hissed, closing the distance between them with two strides. He clenched his hands to fists, longing to kick the man for a second time, but I put my flat hand on Jared's chest, telling him without words to keep it cool.

The blond man narrowed his eyes and growled, tendons on his arms straining, legs flexing. "Nobody calls my mother a bitch," He spat, launching himself on Jared and reaching for his throat quicker than any of us expected.

This time though, I didn't step in. If Blondie (as I called the pale-face in my head) wanted a fight, then so be it. It would be quickly over anyway, since the foreign shifter might be faster but definitely not stronger than Jared due to the severity of some his injuries.

Jared sneered, irritated about being taken by surprise and ready give in his wrath. "Now, isn't that touching? Does your mother know what you do to girls?" His fist shot forward, hitting the blond guy's face which caused a crunching sound when it collided with the nose. "This is what you get for beating girls."

Blondie fell on his knees, blood running out of his nose and mouth. What neither of us expected was that he crouched and jumped, launching himself on me this time. He was clever though, I had to leave him that. Choosing the biggest out of three attempting to bring him down was not the worst move. The guy slammed against me full force. I was rather unprepared, but my body created a solid wall, not even swaying by the strength of his impact. Nevertheless, he found my most vulnerable spot and knocked his head hard against my broken arm, grunting as he seemingly hurt himself in the process.

The pain shot through me like a ball of fire. I reached out, red haze of fury covering my sight and I unleashed the rage, hitting the man in the ribs and kneeing him in the guts with impossible strength. A normal human I might have injured really badly with this blows. He only blanched, grabbed his stomach and mouthed a voiceless 'O'. _Lesson learned today: Don't underestimate your opponent._

I knew he would attack for a second time when I saw the determination and aggression in the pale man's eyes that mirrored the aggression and determination I felt. Drawing in a stuttering breath and with buckling legs, he teetered forward, trying to stay standing upon his legs. Blondie swung his arm, aiming for my face, but I had hit him hard and he seemed to have lost his focus.

Prepared this time, I lunged for the right, which threw him off balance. He stumbled and fell on all fours, cussing loudly. Or at least I assumed the gush of foreign sounds were cuss words, since cursing me to hell and back would be the thing I would do if I were in his situation.

"Come on, assface," I growled and bending down, I wrapped my good arm around him in a headlock. I lifted him up to his feet – his skinny ass weighed scarcely nothing - dragged him to where we had placed Leah, forcing him to have a look at her. "Did you do this to her?" I asked menacingly, tightening my grip around his neck. He would get his chance, but he better not lie to me.

Blondie gasped when he saw Leah. "This is a girl," he declared with a hint of panic in his voice. "What happened to her?" He lifted his arms to wrap his hands around my arm in the effort to break free from my grip.

"Of course, it's a girl. What did you think, Miss Piggy?" Jared chimed in, but I mentioned him to be silent.

"Why don't you tell us?" I whispered into his ear. Letting a menacing growl slip over my lips, I confronted him, "It's your scent that is all over her."

He shivered, but when I forced him onto his knees, using my new strength to my advantage, he hissed annoyed and fought against me. I pressed harder and he tried with more intensity to free himself from my chokehold, but were unsuccessful.

He might be almost as tall like me, but he didn't possess my strength. He wasn't weak either, but with his sinewy, lanky body he just couldn't compete with my new physique – and that's a fact, no cockiness.

He shook violently by now. If it was by anger, fear, confusion, or because he was close to phasing, I couldn't tell and I didn't care. "There was this wolf, a huge wolf and it followed me. It attacked me. There was no girl…" he stuttered, and I growled in frustration. How dumb was this guy? Didn't he know another shifter when he saw him?

My resolve to find out what had happened grew only stronger. "What's your name, Blondie?" I asked, using the degrading nick to intimidate him even more.

He choked and clawed his hands into my arm when I tightened my grip even more. "Michel," he pressed out, his heart pounding hard against his chest.

I couldn't quite understand the rough guttural word laced with his heavy accent that sounded more like a bad cough than a name. "Repeat that."

"Michel. My name is Michel." He spat infuriated, struggling, fighting me.

"Michel," I repeated, trying to catch his name right. "Why are you running around in the nude? What the hell happened that explains her condition? What the fuck did you do?" I yelled the last words into his face, losing my control. Leah still hadn't woken up from this deep unconsciousness. I was really fucking worried by now.

Michel gritted his teeth, seemingly becoming aware of his lack of clothes just now. Hey, I wouldn't be happy either when getting caught butt-naked. He groaned, while trying harder to fight me off. His attempts were futile. "I can't remember. I don't know how I came here. Last thing I know was this wolf following me…" He eventually ground out, shaking really badly now.

I shrugged my shoulders and, reining in my anger, I released my chokehold on him before I would strangle him to death and let him drop to the ground. "Nobody fucks with my friends, pale-face," I warned him.

The guy sucked in air greedily and furiously rubbed his neck and throat.

Smelling his confusion, fear and anger, I felt pity for him – for a moment. Maybe he was a lunatic?

I watched him crouching on the ground and how he rocked back and forth on his heels, again mumbling to himself. He looked crazy. But then, on the spur of the moment, I realized. He didn't know that he was able to phase. He was all alone here. Probably there was no one that had ever told him. Sam had been alone first. We knew about the confusion he had felt in the beginning. Maybe it was the same with this pale fellow?

But all sympathy for him aside, we had to make sure that he knew what he was and we had to clear up what happened to Leah. We could hardly let him run around unaware of the ability to phase into a huge furry beast. Maybe, if we enraged him hard enough (or preferably scared the shit out of him) he would lose control and phase. For all what we knew, anger was the trigger to phasing and when we would help him through, he should eventually understand what he was.

"Take him out, Embry," I ordered, thinking about Michel's fury when I had overpowered him. As far as I could judge this Michel-guy already, he hated to be weak and dominated. That would be the point how we could bring pressure on him. When Embry looked at me confused, I let him know with the smallest gesture of my hand that I didn't mean it for real.

"Gladly," Embry responded, giving his best to look menacingly, and while cracking his knuckles he said to the pale face, "Sorry to say that, but you're history, dude." He stepped forward, reaching out for Blondie.

Again, Michel surprised us with his agility. With an unexpected twist of his body, he shrugged out under Embry's hands, spun around and attacked me again – nowhere close to phasing. His head knocked against my broken arm for a second time and the force of him colliding with me made me stumble over my own feet.

_Very pathetic, Black. Second lesson learned today: You're too stupid to remember lesson one._

Angry with myself, I lashed out. I wanted him to feel my fury, wanted to show him that I was the one who was stronger. My fist smashed into my challenger's stomach, knocking the wind out of him, and this time I must have hit the right spot, because Blondie doubled over and fainted out. _Score: Jacob 1 – Stranger O. _

Rubbing my aching arm, I stepped back, trying to get a hold on myself before I beat the shit out of the stranger. Somehow, I had the distinct feeling that fighting this guy was not an option. It was not what I should do. Somehow, it felt wrong. I stared coldly at the man, thinking about the alternatives we had.

"Aw, Jacob, come on-" Jared groaned impatiently and smashed his fist into a tree. "We should take Leah and leave. Let him rot here…"

I held up my hand to silence his outburst. "I just can't leave him alone here, Jared. I guess he doesn't even know what he is," I explained. It left Jared unfazed, and I was becoming annoyed with Jared. Pacing back and forth between the pale-face and Leah, I eventually said, "I need to think for a moment."

Jared growled irritated. "Think fast, bro. She's in a bad condition."

"I know that by myself, Jared." I answered aggravated. Who was he to tell me what to do? I clenched and unclenched my hand to release some of the tension I was building up. If he would only say one more word…

Maybe it would be healthier for both of us if I took Jared out of the situation? "Look, why don't you go ahead and search for a place where we can spend the rest of the night?" I asked him, chastening my temper. With a nod towards Leah, I added, "I don't want Leah lay here in the open, either."

Jared frowned. "Are you sure?" I rolled my eyes at him and he waved at me with a dismissive gesture. "Never mind. I saw a shack not too far away from here. I'll check if it's safe…" With a last grim look at the fiend he headed into the forest.

I fought a sigh and squatted down beside Leah, while listening to her shallow breaths and all of a sudden, I thought about her head. I had looked at her arms, legs, her torso searching for injuries, but I had forgotten to check her head. Cautiously, I ran my hands over her head, finding a huge bump at the back of her head. The little experience I had with head wounds was limited to the injury Bella had gotten when her first ride on the bike failed and she had hit her head on a stone. I had grilled the doctor about concussion and he had told me what I needed to know.

That's why I remembered that a loss of consciousness could happen, dependent on the severity of the injury, but even though the loss of consciousness looked dramatic, most of the concussions went away without treatment. I frowned and bit down on my lower lip. I could only hope that Leah's condition wasn't as bad as it seemed.

I picked her up as best as I could with only one usable arm and walked over to Embry who stood guard beside the foreign shape-shifter. "Let's go, Embs."

He didn't respond. Staring at the man, he was deeply lost in his thoughts. Then Embry suddenly whispered, 'Sleeping beauty' and mumbled 'to be in Leah's place' and '… damn sexy'.

"What…, what did you say?" I shook my head and squeezed my eyes shut. "I so don't want to know about sexy."

Embry drew in a shocked gasp, whirled around and stared at me wide-eyed, clasping both of his hands over his mouth.

"Holy Shit," I breathed out, dumbstruck, processing Embry's revelation. "This is a guy!"

"Jake. Tell me I didn't say that out loud," Embry whispered embarrassed, head burning red, his breath coming in gasps. Close to a panic attack, he stuttered, "You didn't hear me, Jake. I didn't say anything." Slowly he stepped back. "I didn't say a word," he repeated horrified.

"I could hear you, loud and clear." I said aghast, rubbing over my eyes and temples, trying to cut out the flood of strange images my brain created over Embry's words. _Someone hands me some bleach, please… _

Embry pushed his hands into his pants pockets, his heart racing away. "I feel like I'm going to throw up," he mumbled, his dark skin turning from the bright red of shame to a disturbingly pale shade. The next moment he bolted towards the forest and then I heard him puking.

I groaned, looking at Leah in my arms, at the pale-face lying at the ground, towards Embry vomiting against a tree.

How much can one man take in one day? Fighting against your natural enemies to protect your people, saving your girl's father from a blood-crazed vampire, imprinting on the girl you were in love with for almost all of your life, fighting against your imprint's vampire-ex, making out with your imprint and getting caught by her dad. Telling her you imprinted on her and ending up with making out again, getting interrupted by your best friend and dealing with your bossy Alpha and being send to a mission to find a lost pack mate, only to find said pack mate in a X-file-worth situation with a stranger and then the bummer; your other best friend reveals per accident that he was gay.

For once in my life things could go smooth and easy. Like, looking for Leah, finding her, picking her up and bring her home. End of story. _For once in my life…_

I should be the one puking.

"You're such a drama queen, Call. Pull your shit together and come here," I barked and ran my hand roughly through my hair. What were you supposed to do in such a situation? Make a fuss about it? Ignore it? Wait for what happens next? _Hey, are there more idiotic situations? Cool, sign me in. _

I impatiently waited for Embry getting his stomach under control again. Did I have a problem knowing that my best friend was gay? No, I definitely hadn't. Surprisingly, I couldn't care less, but I was wondering how long he would know already that girls didn't do it for him? But then, he had – unlike me – his fair share of girl-friends before…

After a while, way too long for my liking, Embry approached slowly, but didn't dare to look me in the eyes. "I'm still good ol' Embs, Jake," he said hesitating, looking unsure of himself, while kicking his heel into the ground. Then he stretched his arms out. "Give her to me. Right now, I can carry her easier than you."

I nodded, handing Leah over to him. She groaned and stirred, but didn't wake up. "Embry," I stated, scratching my head. "Will probably need some time to get used to it, but it doesn't change a thing." I slapped him on the back encouragingly, before I turned around to look at the pale-face. "So,… What do we do with him?"


	31. Ultimatum

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

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A/N****: My dear readers. Thank you so much for all your encouraging and kind words. I appreciated each and every one of it. It really helped me over my severe writer's block with this story. I haven't been inactive though. As you know, I'm revising this story from the beginning. I'm having the first 7 chapters beta'd now, the others will follow. Also, I wrote a very special one-shot called "Last Confession" that is nominated for three different categories for the "The Single Shot Awards". If you want to read it, you can find it in my profile. And should you find it could enough to vote for me, you can do this here (take out parentheses): http:/thesingleshotawards(dot)blogspot(dot)com/ **

**I'm having JUL5857 now to do the beta job. I'm so grateful that she's going to do that. Hugs, Juls!**

**I recently read a lot of really good stories. If you're looking for something new try out **_**Sublimation**_** by sfiddy (here on FF), or **_**My Past, Your Present, Our Future **_**by JUL5857, or **_**Fate's Idea of Fun **_**by Little Furry Cannibals. **

**Don't forget to review. It really makes me happy.**

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**Chapter 32 - Ultimatum**

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_Recently on Days without Rain: _

_Jacob finally imprints on Bella after he went through his second transformation. Out of the blue Edward appears and starts a fight with Jacob. Bella throws herself between the two and gets hurt. She tells Edward a word or two, Sam leaves a nasty remark about Jacob imprinting on a white girl. Jacob is getting pissed at Sam more and more. Jacob and Bella finally have some alone time and an amazing dry-hump session that gets interrupted by Quil who was sent by Sam. Jacob needs to go __search and find Leah. Bella learns about Jacob's mother and his brother Jeremy that was never born. She also finds out that she has Native American blood in her. Embry, Jared and Jacob find Leah, but she is badly injured and obviously got into a fight with the mysterious man that is lying next to her. Embry reveals per accident that he is gay. _

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Jared returned some minutes later. Just in time, because the pale face slowly came to his senses and started revolting again, even though he was still disoriented and weakened. I pulled him up to his feet, taking him in a hard grip. I dragged him along with us and Embry carried Leah in his arms. Her heartbeat became stronger, her breathing more even. We had hope that she would wake up soon.

I wouldn't mention Embry's revelation to Jared. If anything it would be Embry's business to spill the beans. After all, I wondered how he could keep it a secret to all of us until now. He had never slipped once before, not even when we were in our wolf form did we catch him thinking about it.

Jared led our small group through the forest, aiming for the shack he had found and which he thought seemed safe and was unvisited by anyone in years.

I still was dedicated to bring the pale-face to phasing. He seemed to have his emotions under control right now, but I wanted his fury. I wanted that he changed his form. Only when he realized what he was, he would be able to deal with this ability and therefore be able to control it. Hopefully, we also would find out finally what had happened between him and Leah.

After a few miles, my injured arm started to throb angrily. I was exhausted, and I hated it. The day had been eventful, but I couldn't give in to my weakness or even show it. I couldn't admit that I was too tired to carry on, when I was supposed to have the lead.

I pushed myself further, ignoring the aching bones and muscles, but then the pale face became aware of my condition, and he started to fight me again. This Michel seemed to be a sly guy. He waited until my alertness lessened, and then he made the next move, revolting against my grip. It took me more and more strength to keep him in check.

"Jared," I finally growled when Michel almost tore free.

Jared took over without saying a word. Aggressive energy flared up between the two of them as soon as Jared touched the pale-face and forced the guy's arms behind his back, pushing him forward.

It didn't take long and Blondie grew more and more agitated. This time, I didn't stop Jared handling Michel roughly, seeing that he wasn't unnecessarily forceful or mean. With each moment that passed by, the trembling and shaking of the pale-face increased, and his blue eyes became brighter and fiercer.

Michel discovered that I was constantly changing looks with Jared and realized that he was watched, that we were waiting for something to happen. With this realization the shaking reached its peak and his frame became blurry.

"Step back now, Jared," I said quietly and moved in front of Embry and Leah.

Jared dropped the man's hands and withdrew, bringing distance between him and the pale-face. A cold shiver ran down my spine when Michel stared straight into my eyes, utter confusion and horror showing in his face. I realized that this man was absolutely clueless about what was going on with him, and I almost regretted that I had pushed him so far.

Michel kept his bright blue eyes fixated on me as virile energy buzzed around him and then, we heard the familiar cracking and rustling that bode the changing. He cried out in pain and fury. The cry changed to a high-pitched screech and before our eyes the man became animal. Instead of arms he grew wings, feet became talons, skin grew feathers, and his face changed to a raptorial bird's head.

In the spot where the man had been standing sat a huge Golden Eagle.

"This is unbelievable," I said with awe. "And I was sure this is a wolf."

The eagle spread its wings and screeched again, threatening us with its beak, before he clapped his wings and soared into the air. He bolted through the branches, breaking and destroying them in his rage, and instinctively we backed away, searching shelter under a massive crowned tree. We weren't frightened, but cautious. After all, we faced an aggravated Golden Eagle – a bird that actually was not only the strongest raptorial bird, but also a creature we showed deepest respect. The Golden Eagle was, like the wolf and the whale, part of our traditions and our religion. We considered it sacred.

"What shall we do, Jake?" Jared asked with a humbled look upon his face, but shaking badly as he tried to stay in his human form.

"I honestly don't know. I never knew that pale-faces were able to phase. Let alone into an eagle..." I said in a hushed voice. My muscles twitched as the wolf within me wanted to spring free and I growled, powered by the same Alpha vibes I had felt when I led my pack into the battle last night.

"We have to protect Leah as long as she can't help herself," I stated, feeling content now that I took over control with all – heart, body and soul. "We split up. Embry, take Leah to the shack. You will find it when following Jared's track. Jared, we stay here, watch the eagle and fight it if necessary." I stripped down and tied my shorts to my ankle.

Embry started to run, and the eagle swooped down. He attacked Embry, aiming for his head, but Embry ducked and ran faster, getting away from him by inches only.

With a roar, I let the wolf out, feeling the brace break away. When I landed on all fours, I recognized the pain located in my right arm – now foreleg. Due to loads of adrenaline flooding my system the pain faded into the background as I had a goal – fighting off the attacker.

The eagle circled above us, its huge wings stirring up the air. He screeched when he looked at me and then Jared, who was phased now as well. I saw fury in the eagle's eyes, but also desperation and I would even bet that I saw a longing in his eyes – a longing for Leah.

_Yi__kes! _Jared snarled reading my thoughts, and shook out his fur. _This is disgusting. This fucker deserves his ass kicked for what he did to Leah. _

_Geez, Jared! Don't jump to conclusions. Yes, he fought against Leah, but she was phased__ then. He didn't know she's a girl. _I replayed the conversation in my head, and picking up his greatest concern, I thought at him; _and for your info, he didn't violate her. _

Jared's fur bristled in anticipation as the eagle swooped down again. He growled deep in his throat, prepared to leap at him. I readied myself and tensed up, eager to bring the eagle down. For a moment, my animal instincts took over. I was ready for the fight and it would be epic. Wolf against eagle – a first, I guessed. However, it never came.

When the other shifter came down and close enough that we could reach him, Jared and I jumped. I stumbled when my broken foreleg gave out under me, but Jared caught the eagle and bit down hard on his one wing. The other shape-shifter screeched aggressively and ripped free, dragging one of his huge talons across Jared's snout, tearing the skin open.

_Damn._ Jared yelped as blood poured down his face.

_Are you alright, _I asked and jumped again, but the eagle just soared an inch higher, mocking my efforts. He surely was in advantage here.

_He almost had my eye, _Jared ranted. _Kim is going to have his balls, if this fucking leaves a scar on my face. I swear._

I chuckled, knowing the thing Kim had for Jared's face. _Worried about your visage, Jared? I doubt it can get worse than it already is. _

_Asshol__e, _Jared growled and virtually flipped me the bird.

The eagle now picked up speed and flew away, backing out of the fight. And hell, did you ever know how a fucking bird tells you that you pissed him off? That fucker left us a good-bye in form of bird-do splashing down in front of us, barely missing Jared's head.

Jared lost it for a moment and furiously barked up the sky.

_Come, Jared. Let's find Embry, _I thought at my brother, pushing my snout into Jared's side.

Jared huffed and started running, leading us through the dark forest towards the shack. Some minutes later, we found the old cabin. I quickly took in the environment and ran in a close and a wide radius around the shack to make sure that we were alone. Then, I phased back and pulled on my shorts. Jared already waited for me in his human form. The slash on his face was huge and looked dangerous, but as far as I could see it was already healing by now.

"It will be alright," I said to Jared, after I had stepped closer and had inspected his wound in the pale moon light. "We wouldn't want your beautiful face ruined, now would we?"

Jared slapped my hand away. "Shut up, Black," he laughed then, and we entered the shack.

A naked light bulb dangled from the ceiling, tinting the cabin with its yellow light. A worn-out couch took most of the space in here. Other than that an old plastic table and two ugly plastic chairs stood in the corner. An ancient looking, rust-covered camping cooker stood on another tiny table. Embry rustled through a wall cupboard that was close to falling off, searching – no need to ask here – for something to eat.

Embry looked up. "You're back already? Where's the pale-face—"

"Where is Leah?" I cut him off. I expected her to be lying on the couch, but she wasn't there. For a moment, I feared that she had run off again and the search would need to start all over.

Embry mentioned to a door, and I heard water running. "She woke up shortly after I left you. She's cleaning herself up now."

"So she's feeling better?" Not waiting for Embry to answer, I walked across the room – it only took me two steps – and knocked. "Leah, you okay?"

"Stay the fuck out of here," she screeched, panic giving her voice a shrill ring. "And what the hell happened to me?"

"You don't remember?" I shouldn't be surprised. Yet, I was. A severe head injury was said to cause memory loss, but after all, she was a wolf with superfast healing abilities. Who knew that her injury would affect her that much? "We found you about a mile from here. You've been in a fight..."

She murmured a quiet "Oh" in response, but remained silent after that.

"Leah, are you sure you don't need any help? Don't take your injuries too lightly..." I let my head fall against the wall, feeling exhausted. I hadn't slept in almost two days and my body and mind graved comfort and silence.

"Go away," she muttered.

A light tap on my shoulder startled me, and I realized that I had nodded off for a second. "Jake, I'm gonna head out and find us something to eat," Embry said. "We all need some calories."

I cracked my eyes open. "Take Jared with you. The pale-face escaped. Watch out, okay?"

"Are you good alone? You look like you haven't slept in nights." Embry looked at me, concerned.

"I haven't slept in nights, but apart from that I'm good. Tired, but... good." I flashed him a short grin and ran my hands through my hair, before I turned my attention back to Leah. I heard Embry and Jared leave and I, inhaling deeply, knocked at the door again.

"Leah, are you decent? I'm coming in now," I warned her and opened the door slowly, giving her time to decide whether to let me in or to kick me out.

She didn't yell at me or say anything at all and when I stuck my head through the door, I found her sitting on the toilet lid, examining the scratches on her legs. Then, I stepped in.

"Get out, Jacob," she said with a hoarse voice, but didn't look up or put up a fight which made me all the more concerned about her condition.

I shook my head and kneeled down in front of her. "Can't. Are you alright so far?"

Leah huffed. "Do I look alright to you? My head hurts like a bitch and I feel as if a fucking truck ran over me." She slowly got on her feet, wobbling a bit. I caught a glimpse of her scent as she dragged her feet out of the filthy little bathroom and exhaustedly walked into the similar disgusting main room and cautiously sat down onto the dusty couch.

Her scent was still calling to me, or to be more exact, it called to the wolf within me. I couldn't explain why this would happen to me. The fact that Jared and even Embry seemed to be affected by her alluring smell as well didn't make any sense to me. How could it have effect on Embry when he was gay? What about Jared and me? We were imprinted wolves. We shouldn't be attracted to another woman's scent. Yet we were and it was scaring in a way.

I took one of those plastic chairs and put it front of her, hoping that it wouldn't break under me as I sat down and asked her again. "You really don't remember, Leah?"

"It's none of your business, Jacob. You found me. I'm still alive. End of story." Her head fell back into the cushions and she closed her eyes.

I wasn't going to back down. Not when I could have spent the night with Bella, but was forced to search for Leah instead. "Let me put this straight, Leah. It is my business. Now talk." I knew, I wasn't easy on her, but I wouldn't let her shut me out.

"I don't want to talk with you," she bit out.

"And I'd rather be with Bella, but instead I'm sitting here with you being injured. Way to have fun, Leah."

"Why don't you just run home to your precious little pale-face? I don't need you here. I'll be better off alone." She turned her head away from my glare and stared at the opposite wall.

Anger surged through me at her behavior. "I was ordered to find you. And that's what I did. Now, make it easy on us and tell me what you remember. The situation we found you in was a little..." I stopped when I sensed her discomfort.

Leah huffed and crossed her arms over her chest, wincing when the movement caused her pain. "There's not much to tell, okay? I ran after the white wolf. I wanted to know who he is, but then I lost his track completely... I continued searching for him since he could hardly disappear into thin air. Last thing I remember is that a huge mountain lion jumped down from a tree and attacked me."

"A mountain lion?" I asked perplexed and I remembered that I had smelled the scent of mountain lion on her as well as in the clearing.

"Yeah," she murmured and looked out of the window, peering into the dark night.

_She can't keep eye contact. She's hiding something. _"Is that all?"

For a moment her face softened and looked vulnerable. "All I remember. And now stop bothering me. I'm hurting." She settled on the couch, slowly moving into a lying position. Fresh blood seeped through the fabric of her dress.

"You're bleeding again." I pointed to her stomach and looked around in the cabin in the hope to find something clean to use as a bandage that I could strap around her waist to make the bleeding stop.

"So what? The bleeding will stop in no time. Don't give yourself a brain hemorrhage over it." Leah curled up on the couch and dozed off almost immediately.

I rested my head against the armrest and listened to her breathing, displaying the events of the night in my mind and trying to figure out the other shape-shifter. Leah had told me that she followed the white wolf. Then, the wolf's track had disappeared and she had been attacked by a mountain lion. And, when we made him phase he took the form of an eagle. How was it possible that a shape-shifter could phase into three different animals? Was it possible that one could change his form into _any_ animal he wanted?

I must have fallen asleep, because suddenly I was at First Beach. The weather was raging. A thunderstorm churned up the ocean, sweeping icy waters against me. Everything looked pristine and ancient and myriads of whales rode the ocean, their mystical and beautiful voices resonating in the air. Then, I saw her. She came from the ocean, using the whales as the ground to walk on.

The wind stilled, but the atmosphere was crackling with energy. Small bluish flashes of lightning appeared, surrounded her and got caught in her long raven hair.

"Mother," I whispered, taken aback with awe, and I got goose bumps. "You're here again."

She closed the distance, hovering before me. She wore a red dress with the Quileute wolf totem on it. Her bare feet didn't touch the ground. As I took in her appearance I noticed that her body was translucent and ghostly, and I shivered.

"We need to talk, Jacob," my mother said, love shining in her eyes, but her voice was powerful and determined. "I already told you everything you need to know. Still, you're not following your destined path."

"I... I haven't had the time to think, yet... So much happened..." I stuttered, remembering her talking to me when I was out cold during my second transformation. She had told me about leadership and accepting who I was, but as I was standing here, it seemed that her words hadn't reached my heart yet. I had felt the call of the Alpha, but yet I had suppressed and ignored it. Embarrassed, I looked at my naked feet, knowing that my mother was disappointed in me.

She touched my face, and her touch was warm and soft. Her scent was familiar. It brought back memories of my earliest childhood and it let me know that she forgave me. My chest constricted and I felt like choking on a big lump in my throat. She reached out and placed her hand on my chest. The pain in my heart subsided and was replaced by an overwhelming feeling of love, safety and confidence.

A little while later, my mother stepped back and said, "You have to bring Leah home. And fast. Her injuries are not to be taken lightly."

I nodded approvingly and promised, "Leah is taking a rest now and tomorrow she will be back home."

"And then you need to go back and find the other shape-shifter. He might be important for the pack, but you need to be careful. He's an unpredictable creature," my mother went on with a stern voice.

I frowned and responded irritated, "How can he be important for us? He's a pale-face!" Once the words were said, I realized that it sounded utterly biased and discriminatory. My parents had raised me better than that. "I'm sorry," I apologized. Still, I had other things in my mind than to hunt a stranger down.

"I want to get back to Bella," I objected, unnerved that again someone interfered, even if it was my dead mother.

"My son, it's not the time for that yet. Other things need to be done first," my mother stated and raised her eyebrows. The wind flared up and the flashes of lightning amplified. _Did she do that?_

Stubbornly, I shook my head and crossed my arms over my chest. "But I finally imprinted on Bella. I want to be with her."

She didn't dignify me with a response other than a knowing smile. It gave me just the right amount of time to work myself in the state of rage I inherited lately when it came to Bella. Of course, I knew how possessive imprinted wolves could be. I got to know it through our linked minds when we were in our wolf forms, but I never felt it myself until I imprinted on Bella and was repeatedly stopped from spending time with her. My muscles started to vibrate. There was nothing that I could do against it.

"I want to be with her," I repeated, accentuating each word. To keep me from flipping out even more I clenched my teeth so hard it hurt. My fists were shaking uncontrollable. No, I didn't want to phase in front of my mother.

My last answer changed something my mother's laid back attitude. With a quick movement, she raised her arms into the sky as if calling the wind spirits. Her dark eyes suddenly flashed white and she called out, "I came for a reason. You need to remember who you are and finally take responsibility." Her voice thundered in my ears, and when I looked into her face, she looked downright frightening. Her whole body seemed to grow in front of me. It was as if she fed the flashes or the flashes fed her.

My mother reached out to touch me. White flames danced on her fingertips. I wanted to back away, but I was rooted in my spot. She laid her hand on my chest and a spark skipped over and landed on my skin, but I felt no pain. Fascinated, I stared at the spark as it danced over my chest, my arm, my shoulder. She followed the spark with her fingertip, leaving a trail of bluish fire on my arm. That too didn't hurt.

My mother gave me a moment, but then she came straight to the point. "The pack needs a strong leader. Sam is only a placeholder. It is time that you take over."

Frustrated with her demands and my insecurities, I ran my hands through my hair and I heard an electric sizzling as the fire that didn't burn danced over my head. "I'm not ready yet. I won't live up to any ones expectations. I'm not a good leader. Not as good as Sam…"

"Oh, is that so?" she asked, smirking. "Why did you feel so aggravated in his presence then? You feel the call of the Alpha in you. You wanted to challenge him. You can't deny it anymore. It's in your blood. You didn't undergo your second transformation for no reason."

"Why happened this to me anyway? Not even dad knew about someone who went through the transformation twice," I asked her, feeling sure that she could give me the answer. By now, I was completely enveloped by an aura of bluish flames and I grew accustomed with the non-burning fire. In fact, it was fun to look at, but my mother quickly pulled me out of my contemplation.

She elegantly curled her fingers and the flames that moved along my body were pulled back. A ball of fire hovered above her open palm, and she blew against it and sent it flying into the air. When I followed the fire ball with my gaze, I suddenly saw my pre-transformation self in it as I was thrashing around on my bed, whimpering from the onslaught of pain that forebode my first phasing.

My mother snapped her fingers and the fireball was gone. She explained, "When you turned into a wolf for the first time you were too young. At that time your body wasn't ready to go all the way. The fever and the pain would have killed you. So we interfered and decided to let you transform in two phases."

I had the faint memory that I knew about that already. Also, I had the feeling that she had told me about the 'we' when she had guided me through my second transformation, but I needed to ask her nevertheless. "Who is '_we'?_"

"We are the Spirit Counsel. We watch and sometimes we need to interfere," my mother answered gently. "The first time I came to you it was to show you the way and to lead you through your second transformation safely. We hoped that you would step up to your rightful position at once, but you didn't. That's why I'm here again. This time though, I was sent to make you aware that this is your last chance. An ancient spell can be broken, but only if you make the right choices."

I swallowed hard, my heart raced in my chest, and I broke out in a cold sweat. Something in what she said frightened me. "A spell? What spell?" My voice actually squeaked a little, but in that moment I didn't care.

"I already told you about the spell, Jacob, but it is hidden in your memories."

I frowned and opened my mouth to ask her what she meant. She shook her head disapprovingly. "Don't bother. You will remember in due time, my son."

My mother took my face between her hands, her eyes burned with intensity. "You're young, Jacob, but you grew up exactly to be the man your dad and I wished for. You would do anything to keep your tribe, your friends, and your family safe. You're determined and smart. You care for the people around you. You have so much love to give. That's your most important strength. And now… what I'm going to tell you now is the last of what I'm allowed to tell you. Listen carefully." She paused, giving significance to her words. "You know your flaws and you need to turn them into your strengths. Learn to be patient. Learn to control your temper. Be careful and content, but don't forget that you're still you. And don't let yourself be deceived or dazzled, especially by false pride."

I couldn't break the eye contact, even when her bright eyes frightened me. In the moment, she wasn't the mother I remembered. Right now, she was like an angry goddess. Maybe she wasn't my mother, but some entity that used her form to confuse me?

Her face softened and she shot me a knowing smirk. "You are right, Jacob. It can be hard to decide who you can trust and when you better be suspicious." The grip of her hands on my face tightened and suddenly, I saw a vision of Bella lying on her bed. It was as if entered her room for real, and she looked up as if feeling my presence. "Jake," Bella mouthed and smiled. Then, the vision vanished.

"I will never harm you, Jacob. I'm your mother. I only want what is good for you, but there's only so much I can do." She let go of my face and put her hands flat on my chest. Where she touched me it became really warm and a tingling sensation spread out in my whole body. "When you wake up, your arm will be healed and your body will be fully recovered."

I nodded, feeling very tired suddenly. I had a hard time to keep my eyes open. My mother's body slowly became more and more translucent and her voice sounded from far away. "Listen, Jacob. It will be your choice. And hers. But each of you has to make those decisions on their own. Alone, without the other..."

With that said, my mother disappeared and with her the whales were gone and only darkness and quietness surrounded me.

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I was awakened by the smell of food and something hitting me in the face. My hands flew up, and I caught a paper bag. Cracking my eyes open, I found Embry and Jared standing in front of me, each holding a similar bag in his hand.

"Get up. We brought some food." Embry waved his bag in front of me. The smell was delicious, even when it was only junk food. _Hail you, good ol' McDonalds._ I haven't been eating in what felt like days.

I stood up, feeling well-rested and full of energy – despite the hunger. Naturally, I was still a bit dizzy about my latest dream experience. Would I have some peace to process what my mother had told me anytime soon? The most thriving need right now though was getting me fed. I popped open the lid of my coke that Embry held out to me and gulped it down. _Ahh! Sugar keeps the wolf running…_

"Where did you get this from?" I asked with my mouth full as I was already munching on a cheeseburger.

"I use to carry some money around with me, should the occasion arise that I get hungry…" Embry flashed me a wide, proud grin, before he bit heartily into his burger. "All we had to do was to find the next town. It's about 10 miles from here."

I glanced out of the window, frowning when I realized that dawn was breaking, and Embry cackled like a hyena, spraying food crumbs all over the place. "You've been sleeping like a baby, Jake. You wouldn't have woken up if someone stole your pants from your ass."

"No way," I protested grinning, and shrugged my shoulders.

Jared fell in with Embry and said laughing, "Yes way."

On the couch Leah stirred and awoke with a mumbled curse. "Shut up, assholes. Trying to sleep here."

"We love you, too," Embry said to Leah, and gave her one of the bags before trying to help her sit up. She slapped his hand away – I didn't expect different – and sat up by herself, but groaning with the effort.

Leah ripped the bag open and practically inhaled the fries and the two burgers that where in her bag.

I wolfed my meal down, while watching Leah's every move. She wasn't alright yet. The way she moved overly cautious and the sweat that broke out on her forehead told me more than she wanted to let us know. When she had finished eating, I said, "I want to check your injuries. Do you mind?"

"Like I would strip down." She shook her head vehemently. "I can take care of my injuries myself."

"Don't be a prude, Leah. I've seen you before." _And much more than I need. _I blushed, thinking of it, but Leah didn't recognize it since she had her eyes closed again. "Leah, come on," I pressed. "I would totally show you my injury if the tables were turned."

"This is not _You show me yours, I'll show you mine."_ She scoffed and whipped her head around to stare me straight in the eyes. "I'm wearing no undies and therefore no show—" she exclaimed, but I interrupted her.

Out of the corner of my eyes I noticed Jared and Embry watching us with amusement. With a simple nod of my head I told them to get out of the cabin. "Spoil sport," Embry mumbled before he closed the door behind him.

I turned my attention back to Leah and said, "Leah, when we found you, you were completely naked. Naturally. We got you dressed of course. We already saw your injuries. You don't need to be ashamed if that's what bothers you." I could understand her dilemma though. "I'm concerned about you. You don't heal as fast as we normally heal, Leah. In fact," I pointed at her belly, where her injury still leaked blood, "you're still bleeding."

I was a little bit light-headed by her enticing scent, but I recognized that her scent wasn't as strong as it had been before we fell asleep. As glad as I was that it didn't affect me that strongly anymore, I combined it with her weakened condition and my concern grew.

Leah still refused to cooperate and didn't let me have a look at her wound. With my mother's warning in my head, I spontaneously grabbed the fabric of Leah's dress. Before she could utter her protest, I ripped it open, creating a tear that left her chest and hips covered and only revealed part of her waist.

Leah screamed surprised and punched my chest with disturbingly low strength. "I hate you, Jacob Black. I said no."

"Don't be a girl, Leah," I mocked her, laughing to cover my anxiety. "I'm like your brother, so calm down." I carefully slid the fabric aside, frowning at what I saw. Part of her injury was still bleeding slightly, part of it was covered with a crust of dried blood and dirt. Where it was crusted, the dress stuck to it so tightly that if I tried to remove it I would rip the wound open. Suddenly, I wasn't so sure anymore about werewolves being immune to getting infections as the skin around her wound looked angry and was swollen.

Leah propped up on her elbows and stared at her stomach. "Shit."

I couldn't agree more and with my sternest voice I said, "We get you home. Now. And stop refusing our help. That's an order."

I called Embry and Jared back in, discussing how we could get her home without causing more damage. We came up with the solution to phase and carry her on our backs while she stayed in her human form. Phasing would take too much energy from her, plus she would be way heavier to carry when she was in her wolf form. The talk didn't last longer than two or three minutes, but it was all it took for Leah to fall back asleep.

"We have no time to waste," I said to my brothers who left the house instantly, and shook Leah awake. "Leah, we're going to carry you home. You need to hold on tight, okay?"

She nodded, wearily. I picked her up and carried her outside. When she saw that Embry and Jared had already phased wolf, she murmured, "Let me down. I, at least, want to get up myself."

Jared walked real close to her, until his fur-covered flank brushed against her body. All she had to do was to reach out and grasp firmly. She lifted herself up onto his back and when she was settled, she commanded with a weak voice, "Let's go."

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**On Jacob Black 'n' Pack we're having the first Pack Awards with a lot of awesome categories, such as Best Blackwater, Most Original Fresh Story Line/Plot, Highest Hanky Count – saddest story, Favorite Portrayal of Jake (or Bella), Favorite Bella n Charlie Moment, Favorite Jake n Charlie Moment, …, Best Work in Process and a lot more. You definitely should check it out and nominate your favorite wolf stories. Follow the link (just take out parentheses): http:/jacobblack-n-pack(dot)ning(dot)com/group/summerfanficawardnominees**


	32. Connections

**A/N: I'm sorry that it took me so long again to finish this chapter. ****Lately, I really have a hard time to wrap my mind around this story. Nevertheless, I'm going to finish Days without Rain and we're nearing the end of the story, but it will take me some time. **

**I'm posting this chapter without ****my awesome beta JUL5857 had another look on it. Blame me for errors you will find. I'm posting the beta'ed version as soon as the chapter will be back from Julie. **

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

-o-o-

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**Chapter 34**** – Connections**

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**_~~Bella~~_****  
**

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What happened to Bella recently on Days without Rain: _Bella leaves for Jacksonville to visit her mother alone, since Jacob went through his second transformation. Nobody knows that Edward got to know about Bella being in Florida. He goes to find her there. Edward stalks Bella night and day. He also overhears a phone call between Bella and Jacob, learning that the two are pretty close to each other by now. When Bella returns to Forks he follows her there. Jacob imprints on Bella when he picks her up from the bus and Edward needs to witness it without being able to stop it. Raging jealous, he attacks Jacob attempting to kill him. Bella interferes, but gets nearly killed when she jumps in between the fight. When she's out cold she's 'hearing' voices in her head, but doesn't know what to make out of it. Coming back to her senses, she gives Edward a piece of her mind and tells him that there's no chance for him, that she loves Jacob more than everything. The little doctor – that treats Charlie, since he's having heart problems after Victoria's attack – witnessed the fight between Edward and Jacob, incl. seeing Jacob phase, is now in the secret as well. Jacob decides that her abilities to 'see' injuries by laying her hands upon a person could be of great use for the wolves. Doc Liz helps Bella to build up a spiritual connection to Jacob. Later that night, Charlie tells Bella about her Native background and about her real name _Taima._ She's given a medicine bag, and while wearing this medicine bag she's falling asleep and finds herself connected with Jacob again. _

-o-o-

I opened my eyes and looked into Charlie's face which hovered over me. I realized that I must have fallen asleep at some time during our conversation and that I built up a connection to Jacob in my sleep. Disappointed that I had been woken up, I asked Charlie groggily, "Why did you wake me?"

Charlie tiredly rubbed over his eyes. "You should sleep in your bed. You must be so tired after your long flight last night," he insisted and gave my hair a fatherly caress.

Recognizing that my head was positioned in my father's lap, I sat up, feeling awkward. "Uh, yes, of course," I replied and I got on my feet. Dizzy with sleep, I almost fell over the small table and the box with the documents and pictures on it threatened to fall down. "Sorry," I mumbled. "Still clumsy me…"

Someone chuckled across the room. When I looked up I found Billy standing at the window, peering out into the fading night. He seemed wide awake and in a splendid mood. "Go to bed, Bella," he said with a smirk upon his face. "I'm not leaving just yet."

Exhausted, I trudged up the stairs and fell flat on my bed. Then, I felt something heavy around my neck and I reached up, finding the leather cord of the medicine bag entangled with the one that was attached to the wooden wolf. I closed my hand around it, feeling warmth coming off it. _How could this be warm?_

I disentangled the cords, took off the medicine bag, and put it on my nightstand. For a while, I stared at it, caressing the feathers with my fingertips. _This is mine now,_ I thought and recalled everything Charlie had told me. Never had I thought that I was a descendent of Alaskan Natives. I, who didn't do well with cold, unpleasant weather, descended from the icy Alaskan region. I smiled a bit when I thought about the natural grace most Natives possessed, at least the ones I knew and remembered. Here I was, a klutz. No grace, no strength, no survival instincts. I was nothing of that, but trouble. Surely, I wouldn't have survived if I had been living back then.

I couldn't wait to tell Jacob everything I learned about my heritage. Not that it would really matter to him, since he loved me just the way I was, but maybe Sam would be easier on him once he knew about my background. He hadn't been pleased that Jake had imprinted on me—a pale-face. I recalled Sam's shocked face and his pissed remark when he put two and two together, realizing that Jake had imprinted on me. It made me tremble with anger. If I could only turn the time back a few hours, I would love to tell Sam what I thought about his closed-mindedness.

Would Sam be the only one who would react that harshly on the imprint? Or would the other boys and Leah think likewise about me? Leah didn't like me that I knew, but maybe she could be happy for Jacob, since he had imprinted on someone he had loved before the imprint even happened?

Was it possible that Jake had imprinted on me because I finally had opened up? Could it be possible that only when I realized my true feelings for him and how deeply I loved him, we were granted the imprint? It was the only explanation I could come up with, nothing else made any sense to me. Maybe Jake could find out more when he was back home and things had settled down. He could ask Billy or Old Quil in a quiet minute. I was sure that the members of the Tribal Council knew more about the history. Maybe, there was even some kind of archive where we could search for knowledge?

Tossing and turning, I tried to sleep, but sleep wouldn't find me. From time to time, I slumbered for a minute or two, but then almost instantly memories from the last day would pop up before my inner eye. I would see Charlie lying on the couch, his bruised face haunting me. I would remember Edward attacking Jacob. I would relive the fear of losing Jake when he fought against Victoria and later against Edward. Almost vividly, I recalled how Jake had crashed into me when I had thrown myself between him and Edward and the impact had knocked the wind out of me. And what was it with the strange voices I had heard during my unconsciousness?

I must have been waiting to fall asleep for about an hour or so and I still was wide awake. Hearing the soft sounds of Seth and Paul as they walked around the house from time to time, made me feel secure and protected—well, as good as it could get with me missing Jake so much. It was even worse than when I had been missing him in Jacksonville.

I gave up on sleeping then and switched the light on. I took Jake's _Lord of the Rings_ book and started to read. This time, I was able to concentrate much more, but after another hour I was so fidgety that I decided to get up for real. I made my way down the stairs, where I met Billy who was still sitting in our living room, watching over Charlie.

"Hi," I said quietly as I walked over to him. "I couldn't sleep anymore. I just feel so restless, and I'm missing Jake so much." I shrugged my shoulders and sat down next to Charlie. He didn't look any better than he did when I had left them three hours ago. His skin was ashen and let the bruises and gashes seem so much worse.

Billy stood up and went to the door. "I'm going to talk to the boys." Charlie and I stayed seated and didn't know what to say to each other. The awkward moment was broken, when Billy returned. "Everything is alright out there, Charlie," he said, pointing out into the slowly approaching morning. "Paul and Seth are watching over your house for another hour or so. Then, Sam and Quil will take over. I'm going to head home, take a short nap and change. I'm picking you up around eight to see the doctor."

Charlie nodded and mumbled gruffly, "Thanks for being with us this tonight, Billy." He slowly rose and walked towards the door. I was shocked to see him give Billy a hug. Technically, it wasn't only a hug. Charlie almost fell into Billy's arms as if searching for strength or something.

I flew into the kitchen, overwhelmed by what I witnessed. Seeing my father acting way out of character was more than I could bear right now. Billy finally left and Charlie locked the door behind him.

Charlie came into the kitchen and said, "I guess I'll take a shower now and try to rest for another hour or so."

"You should do that, Dad. Try to get some rest. Shall I wake you up when breakfast is ready?"

"You don't have to plan on something big, Bella. I'll probably just have some coffee and a jam sandwich," he replied tiredly.

I played with the medicine bag and then I asked him timidly, "I was wondering if it was okay with you if I invited Paul and Seth in once they're done patrolling. They will be hungry. It's the least we can do…" I expected Charlie to protest, but he only nodded his head.

"You're probably right, Bells," he responded staring out of the window as if he was trying to see the wolves out there. "I still don't like my daughter around these… these…" he added and shrugged his shoulders. "It seems I have to get used to it anyway," he said, frowning.

"They are people like you and me," I replied upset and put a pan onto the stove rather roughly. "If it weren't for them you wouldn't be alive anymore."

Charlie ran his hands through his hair, wincing when he touched the sore spots, and looked at me apologizing. "Sorry, that was uncalled for."

He turned around to slowly walk up the stairs, but before he could take a step I had my arms tightly wrapped around him. It was so unlike me, but I knew that we both needed the reassurance that we hadn't lost each other. The shock about Victoria's attack still ran too deep. Charlie grunted when my arms encircled him, but he accepted my hug and then he hugged me back. When we finally stepped back, I saw that his cheeks were wet from tears. But my eyes stung too, and I knew I had shed some tears as well.

I waited until I heard the shower, then I opened the window and quietly called for Seth. Seconds later I saw his sandy grey colored wolf form moving through the bushes. He tilted his head to the side in a questioning manner, looking that much like a huge puppy dog. He yipped once and grinned. At least, that's what it looked like when his tongue lolled out and the chaps curled upwards.

"I'm preparing breakfast. I thought you and Paul might want to come in and join me when you're done patrolling," I called out and he yipped a second time, before he disappeared in the bushes again. I whipped up the batter for pancakes, peeled and sliced some apples and put them into the batter. Then I pulled out bacon and eggs from the fridge, and set the dishes.

While I worked my thoughts were with Jake and where he might be right now. For a moment I was stock still, remembering how it felt when I was connected to him through our minds, and the need to touch the medicine bag was irresistible. I reached up, getting dizzy as soon as I wrapped my hand around the leather. Closing my eyes, I found myself moving very fast through a lush, dark forest. Everything blurred around me in a whirlwind of dark, sharp colors, the cold morning breeze whooshed against my face, the smells of moss, and leaves and trees invading my senses.

I almost toppled over from the force of it; the sensory overload made me sick to my stomach. I gripped the counter to steady myself. "This is just weird," I mumbled as the vision faded, feeling light-headed, but for all I had just experienced again I couldn't bring myself to remove the medicine bag from my neck. It belonged to me now. I would never put it away.

In an automatic reaction, I tucked it under my shirt, effectively hiding it from anyone's view. I didn't want Paul and Seth to see it before I could discuss everything with Jake. He should be the first to know about my heritage and this gift that had been handed down to me.

Concentrating on the task right before me, I toasted slice after slice of bread, baked the pancakes and fried the eggs. I also thought about the upcoming dinner, calculating what amounts of food I would need to feed the entire pack. I noticed that I grinned all over my face, looking forward to that dinner with all of my heart.

Just in time it rapped and Seth stuck his head through the door, peaking in. "May we come in?" he asked and when I agreed he slipped in with Paul in tow.

"Come on in, guys," I replied and mentioned to our tiny guest bathroom down the floor. "You can wash up if you want to."

Seth strolled down the floor and closed the bathroom door behind him. Paul kept standing awkwardly next to the door, frowning as he watched me placing the pancakes on the table. "How's your father?" he finally asked, not losing his frown, and walked over to the sink to wash his hands.

I held my breath as he walked by me, feeling a little bit intimidated. "Um, he needs to go to the hospital in the morning. The doctor is worried about his heart," I told him and gave him a towel to dry his hands. Smiling half-heartedly, I added, "He has a hard time adjusting to the fact that you turn into wolves and that vampires exist."

"Who can blame him?" Paul mumbled, putting the towel aside. Without being asked, he took the orange juice from the counter and filled the glasses. This made me think that maybe Paul wasn't that bad as I had thought before. "We saw what happened through Jacob's eyes, but we were too far away to be back in time," Paul said, looking upset as he remembered the other night, but when he went on a look of approval showed on his face. "Chief Swan was absolutely freaked out, but still he fought like a true warrior."

My chest constricted and my knees became week as his words reminded me that I could have lost my father, but I fought away the tears. I didn't want to cry in front of Paul, but he noticed my little internal struggle anyway and gave me a sympathetic look which I made sure to ignore. After all, Paul still wasn't my most favorite pack member and I still had strong memories of the day when he enraged me so much that I slapped him. Something, I was sure, he would never ever forgive me—as much as he had tried to downplay it later on.

An awkward silence fell on us and I rearranged the dishes and serving, sighing with relief as Seth finally returned from the bathroom. Paul sat down as if it was the most normal thing to sit down at our table. "I'm so glad that you invited us in," Seth said happily and took a seat opposite Paul. "I really appreciate that I don't need to run back to Emily's. I'm starving. I really don't understand why Sam doesn't want us to-" Seth stopped talking and winced, while Paul glared at him. _What? _Seth mouthed and said out loud, "It's the truth."

Paul leaned forward and stared Seth in the eyes. "Shut up," he said with force and Seth obeyed, his shoulders slumping as the older wolf's order weighed him down.

"Why?" I asked and straightened myself. It seemed ridiculous because even though I was standing I had to look up at Paul. "I know Sam doesn't like me for what reasons ever. It's really not a secret. The thing is I don't really care. Making breakfast for you and Seth—this is me saying thank you for everything you did for my father and for me. And if you don't want to eat with us, feel free to leave." I turned on my heels and went for the stairs to get Charlie, but I stopped when Paul called after me.

"The redhead came for her revenge campaign thanks to you, Bella." Paul looked at me menacingly. "If you'd just stayed away from your leeches in the first place nothing would have happened," he accused me. "Or at least she would have come alone and not with another bunch of bloodsuckers."

I gaped at him open-mouthed, not being able to respond as his accusation slowly trickled through. "What? Why would you say that," I finally asked hoarsely, when I found my voice again. "In the beginning I didn't even know what the Cullens really were. And later it was nothing but a run of bad luck. James wanted to kill me, so the Cullens killed him. They didn't know that Victoria and James were mated…" My voice was thick with the onslaught of bad memories and fright, but I noticed that I wasn't hurting anymore. Only anger remained and that I could handle.

We both ignored Seth who was looking back and forth between the two of us. "Paul…" he chimed in self-conscious. "Maybe you better…"

"Seth, eat. It's none of your business," Paul brushed him of briskly and turned his attention back on me. "You know I'm not interested in the whys and wheres… Fact is, _you're_ the reason they came here," Paul said unaffectedly and crossed his arms before his chest. "Once you knew what the Cullens really were, you should have stayed away from them. It would have saved you and us the trouble."

I shook my head vehemently, automatically defending myself—and _them_. "But I… they're good. They don't drink human blood. They are not dangerous."

Paul barked out a sarcastic laugh. "Do you hear yourself, Bella? In case you've forgotten: Your leech attacked your boyfriend. You still think they're harmless?" Paul stood up and walked really close to me. "You were exposed to the vampire world. That makes you a liability—to the pack and to Jake. You should have stayed away from them. Only the reckless or idiotic run with vampires, Bella."

I was intimidated by his size and the way he approached me, but I didn't back away. Instead I straightened myself even more, furious about Paul and his arrogant behavior. Maybe it hadn't been the best idea to invite him in. "_He_'s not _my_ leech. We're done. And what do YOU think that I should do about the past NOW? Shall I dig me a hole and bury myself in it?" I hissed aggravated. "You're obnoxious. Did you never make a mistake? I can't change it anymore and if you can't trust me because of it, then I probably have to live with it. I'll be forever grateful that you saved my father's life, but I won't let you talk to me like that."

Paul laughed out dismissively. "As if you could influence me… I'm stronger than that. I'm not whipped like Jacob."

I couldn't fight an enraged scream. "Jacob isn't whipped. You can't say that… That's… that's just wrong! Jake is the strongest person I know," I yelled and stabbed Paul in the chest with my finger. He looked at me coldly, sardonically, while Seth exasperatedly chewed on his lips. I instantly felt sorry for the younger boy as it was obvious that he felt more as uncomfortable with the situation, but that he couldn't do anything to help me.

I dropped my voice to a whisper, aware that I better not screamed like that again when I didn't want to engage Charlie in this argument. "You can't do anything about me and Jacob. We love each other and nothing will change that."

Paul set his lips to a grim line, before he spoke up again. "This is the most fucked up imprint I ever heard of," he scoffed. "The biggest and strongest of us imprints on a white chick. What's the future Alpha supposed to do with a pale face? There's not even the slightest chance that you might carry the gene…"

I paled at his affront. _How dare he?_ My mind reeled. Jacob was supposed to be the future Alpha? His second growth spurt finally made sense to me, but why had he never told me that he might become the next Alpha?

Suddenly, Charlie was by my side, moving himself protectively in front of me. Looking over his shoulder, he asked me, "What's going on here? Are you alright, Bella?"

"I'm fine, Dad. Fine as can be," I said reluctantly and studied Paul's face, realizing that he looked concerned, more so worried. It made me think if his behavior was only set up to hide that obviously the working of imprinting was unclear to the pack. Not that I knew anything about imprinting other than the already known facts, but they didn't know anything else, either. Studying Paul even more, I noticed nervousness in him that I hadn't noticed before. It made me pretty sure that I had just seen behind the curtain, even though I didn't know why.

"Paul and I just had a little misunderstanding and he was just about to leave," I sneered nevertheless, determined to not let him know what I had figured out. Apart from that, I really was furious. Concerned or not, it didn't give him the right to speak that disrespectful with me.

"Chief Swan," Paul greeted and tipped his head, smirking arrogantly, and then pinched my cheek. "You're feisty," he chuckled, ignoring my feeble attempt to slap his hand away, and tugged at my cheek a little bit too hard. "I didn't know you had it in you."

Paul blinked in surprise as Charlie reached out and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, yanking him down. Putting all authority into his voice, Charlie shouted into his face, "If you ever put so much as a finger on her again, I'll make sure to find a way to get my guns to good use on you—werewolf or not. Get out of my house. Now!"

Behind us a chair fell as Seth jumped to his feet and tried to pull his pack mate away from Charlie. "Back off, Paul," Seth cried out, his voice cracking with panic. I gasped and realized what made him react like that. Paul trembled and huffed, his instincts kicking in, as he clearly didn't like being attacked by my father.

"Dad, let him go," I begged and shoved against Charlie, trying to push him away from Paul, but Charlie didn't budge an inch. "Paul, just leave…" I was panicking, because I hadn't forgotten how easily Paul got riled up. Even though he was one of the oldest pack members, he was said to be the most volatile wolf with the least self-control.

From outside a rough, commanding bark was to be heard. Charlie flinched and paled, but didn't let go of Paul. Paul ducked his head and stepped back, twisting out of my father's grip easily. Before I could blink an eye he was gone and almost at the same second I heard another, more furious bark and the shredding of clothes. Then, there was silence.

"I'm so sorry, Bella. Thanks for the breakfast though," Seth mumbled embarrassed and turned around to leave, too. He didn't come far.

"Seth, you stay here. Sit down and eat. I'm not letting you get out to that maniac," Charlie croaked and collapsed on a chair nearby. "You okay, Bells?"

I nodded, too shaken for words and sat down next to him, trying to find out how he was feeling. His hands were shaking and he was pale, but other than that he seemed fine. Seth took his seat again, reluctantly. He was tense and listened intently to the noises outside. There still was barking and growling going on farther away from our home. Seconds later it became quiet and it rapped at the door.

I jumped in surprise and I jumped again, when Charlie lost his temper.

"If that's you, Paul Walker, get lost," he shouted, exasperated, turning from pale to an angry red. His hands trembled and his breathing became erratic.

"It's only me, good ol' Quil," a happy voice sounded and the door opened, as Quil let himself in. "Chief Swan, Bella," he greeted, throwing all of us a cheerful smile, and walked to meet us in the kitchen. Quil avoided looking at me, and I tried with all my might not to blush, as I remembered how he had walked in on me and Jake the day before. I hoped that he would keep his mouth shut about it. It wouldn't do any good if he teased me about it and my father got to know. This clearly was the last thing Charlie would need right now.

I took my father's hand and pressed it slightly. He huffed in defeat and muttered under his breath, "Dammit. I'm too old for this shit."

"We were just about to have breakfast. Why don't you come and have some with us?" I addressed Quil nervously and as I waited for him to answer, I noticed a frantic look in his eyes. Looking at him closer, I could have sworn that he was downright freaked out, even though he gave his best to not let it show. If you would ask me why I'd know, well I just knew.

I offered Charlie some pancakes, but he refused and took two slices of toasted bread instead and let me pour him a cup of coffee.

Quil sat down next to Seth, taking the seat Paul had before. I stacked his plate with a couple of pancakes, smacking some pancakes at Seth's plate, too, and when I walked around the table to help myself to a some pancakes as well, I noticed how they sat with hunched shoulders, looking around similar hectic.

Something was up. This I could tell.

I put the pan away and sat down. We all dug into our food. No, scratch that. Seth made a massacre of his pancakes; Quil didn't stop talking throughout his entire meal, and nervously bounced his legs, eating only little for that he was a wolf. Charlie chewed at his dry toasts, observing Seth and Quil. I was the only one that actually ate at all. The situation was awkward and tense.

Charlie was visibly fuming, a fact that I hated. After all he had been through he shouldn't be upset because Paul behaved like an ass. After glaring at every one of us without saying a word, Charlie finally moved to the living room, where he switched on the sport's canal. Only when he was seated on the couch, Seth scooted closer towards Quil. "You," he said frantically, "why are you here? You should be out patrolling with Sam. I doubt that he agreed to you having breakfast with Bella…"

Quil's happy-go-lucky face fell and he chewed on his lips pensively, looking really miserable. "Jake ordered me to go in and not to leave Bella until he said otherwise," he finally choked out, clearly shaken. "I had no choice…"

"What are you saying?" Seth whispered and shook his head in disbelief. "But Sam must have ordered…"

"Jake's order overpowered Sam's. I couldn't fight it. Sam couldn't fight it." Quil shrugged his shoulders and buried his hands in his hair, tugging at it rather forcefully. "I can hear Jake's thoughts. Even now. He's raging mad."

Nervously, I played with the leather cord of my necklace. I heard Seth saying, "But you're not phased. How can you hear him?" and then I felt blazing hot white fury. Nothing but fury. I clutched my chest, hard, as I felt like going up in flames and erupt in an inferno of rage. I clenched my teeth so hard it hurt, and when I was able to emerge from this veil of fury, I tasted blood in my mouth and I found Quil and Seth staring at me with wide eyes.

Slowly, I removed my hand from my chest, realizing that I had been holding on to the medicine bag again and sucked in a sharp breath. Okay, very obviously this was the key for building up a mental connection to Jacob. "My ribs are hurting…" I declared whispering and stood up, hoping they wouldn't ask questions I didn't want to answer.

Quietly, we cleared the table, working hand in hand. "The area is vamp free," Quil eventually informed me. "We're sure that your father kind of… imagined seeing things. We didn't track anything down. Sam and Paul left. Jacob wanted them gone from your house. I'm supposed to stay with you until he returns."

"Can you really hear Jake right now?" I asked him, feigning casualness, while stacking the plates in the dish washer.

"Right now, all I feel is his fury. But when Paul started to argue with you…" Quil told me openly, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand, keeping the other hand he buried in his hair. Then he went on agitated, "Okay, first there was our normal mind link. He was phased, I was phased. We heard him even though he's still quite far away from here, but we were in our wolf forms. So it was no big deal, even when he started to yell at Sam to make Paul stop."

Seth nodded, hanging on every word Quil was saying. Quil continued, "Paul left your house and exploded and Jake flipped. Jake told Paul to piss off and me to phase back. His order was so strong; I couldn't do any different than just follow. I had no choice. It was as if his order pushed me into my human form. When I walked up the stairs I heard him as clearly as if he'd been standing beside me."

"Wow," I said, deeply impressed and shoved the pan with the fried eggs into his hands. "And Paul?" I asked.

Quil grinned as he took an egg and shoved it into his mouth. "He ran off, following Jake's order, and Sam couldn't do a thing," he declared proudly, spraying tiny bits of food through my kitchen.

"Shit," muttered Seth concerned. "That's going to give trouble. Sam won't let Jake get away with it easily."

"What do you think will happen?" I asked curiously, deep within me I couldn't do anything but doubt that Jacob would accept any punishment that came from Sam. In fact, if Jake was supposed to become the next Alpha Sam better be careful around him.

"Sam will order him to run extra patrols. That's usually his kind of punishment," Seth explained and I frowned. I could so see Sam using extra patrols to keep Jake away from me. That's what he liked to do lately—keeping me and Jake apart.

I cleaned the rest of my kitchen in silence. Seth and Quil were forced to watch TV with Charlie after he caught them peeping curiously at the screen from their spot the kitchen. They visibly felt uncomfortable around Charlie, afraid that he might lose his temper again.

Around eight o'clock Billy pulled up with the Clearwater's old pickup. He sent Seth home to check on his mom, but Quil wouldn't budge when Billy told him to leave. Quil only said, "Jake told me so," and Billy caved.

At the hospital Charlie was thoroughly examined and checked by Doc Liz. He received an ECG, an EEG, and a CT scan that he barely could make it through because he panicked again. In the end, all Doc Liz found out was what she already knew before. There were no severe injuries or traceable heart problems. After a long talk with Charlie she explained that all symptoms were most likely a matter of the stress he had been exposed to.

When she was done with Charlie, she made the men leave the room and checked on my bruised ribcage. With my newly developed perceptiveness, I felt a strange vibe coming from her. "Who are you," I asked Doc Liz, feeling the need to know more about her.

"I'm a Watcher," she answered simply, smiling at me, and raised her eyebrow as if she expected me to know.

"I don't understand," I replied, twirling a strand of hair around my fingers. "A Watcher, like in Buffy the Vampire Slayer?"

Surprisingly enough, Doc Liz wasn't offended by my question. She only laughed out, but then explained, "That is fiction, Bella. What I am is real, even if it sounds like fiction. When I told you I can see your aura I meant that I can see your soul. Everyone walking this earth and the realms between has a task. Mine is to take care of you. I made sure your mother would meet your father. She was the vessel, the passage that led you the way."

"Uh-hu," I replied at a loss of word and stared at her wide-eyed, trying to comprehend what she was saying. "And where were you when James almost killed me? And what about Laurent? And Victoria?"

Doc Liz didn't answer on that. She just sent us home with the promise to check on Charlie later when she finished her shift. No need to tell how much frustrated I was about her silence.

Over the rest of the day I grew totally restless. I took care of our house, did the laundry, mopped the floors, and watched TV with Charlie. I also continued reading my _Lord of the Rings _book. Every so often I meant to feel Jake and every now and then I dozed off on the sofa from the lack of sleep.

I finally went to bed, too exhausted to even think straight. I snuggled deep into my pillows and fell asleep almost instantly, but my sleep was fitful and I found me running over long distances and at a high speed.

It was late at night when I awoke from the persistent ringing of our phone. "Hello," I groggily answered.

"I'm home, Bells," a familiar, husky voice at the other end of the line replied, and I almost squealed with happiness.

"Hi, Jake," I breathed and rubbed the last remnants of sleep out of my eyes. "Is everything okay?"

Jake's voice was thick with concern. "We brought Leah back, but she's severely injured. I need you to call Doc Liz and make her come to the Clearwater's."

"Okay," I said and hurried down the stairs to get the Doc's phone number that was stuck to the fridge. "Will you come over later, Jake? Or should I drop by?"

"Just stay at home, Bells. I'll be with you as soon as I can. Love you." Jake ended the phone call and I dialed the hospital.

Although I was totally happy that Jake was back safe and sound, I was deeply concerned about Leah. What had happened to her? Why was she injured?

I went back to bed, wanting to sleep the time away until Jake could be with me. This time, I removed the medicine bag from my neck, before I fell asleep. When I awoke next time it was still dark outside, but I knew the morning was approaching. I felt Jake's presence, knew by my heart that he was close.

I was down the stairs as fast as never before, not minding that I was only wearing my pajamas, and ripped the door open, running into our yard.

Out of the woods my huge, russet wolf emerged, and I practically flew towards him and wrapped my arms around his thick, furry neck.

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**A/N: Please, check on my new oneshots**** (The Workout, Correspondence, and When a Child is Born) and my new story (Hostage of Love), as I've been busy writing during the last months. Everything is posted here in my profile. Let me know what you think and leave me some love on my stuff, since that's what gets me running, folks. **

**Love you all and I wish you a Merry Christmas and A Happy New Year!**


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